Conflicts of interest:

							                   SAMPLE INTERPRETER SCREENING TOOL
                        Establishing Interpreter’s Qualifications


A.   Communication Needs

     1.     Have you had the opportunity to speak with the person in need of your services in
            this matter?
     2.     What kind of language skills does this person have?
     3.     Based upon the conversation, do you feel that you can communicate clearly with
            one another?
     4.     How could you determine that you understood each other?
     5.     Are you familiar with any dialect or idiomatic peculiarities of the language used
            by the person in this case?
     6.     Are you able to communicate despite these idiosyncrasies?
     7.     Are you able to interpret simultaneously without leaving out or changing anything
            that is said?
     8.     Are you able to interpret consecutively?
     9.     Are you able to do sight interpretation of documents?
     10.    For Sign Language Interpreters Only
            a.     What communication mode does this person prefer? (e.g: American Sign
                   Language, Signed English, Pidgin Sign)
            b.     Are you fluent in that mode?
            c.     Are you certified by your professional organization (Registry of
                   Interpreters for the Deaf)? When? Are you certified at the level of mental
                   health interpreting?
            d.      Are you assigned from an interpreter service? Name and address/phone of
                   service. Have they matched you to this particular client?


B.   Conflicts of Interest
     1.     What do you know about this assignment or about anyone involved in this
     assignment?
     2.     Have you ever interpreted for any of the people involved in this assignment?
     3.     Are you aware of any potential conflict of interest you may have such as family or
            marital relationship?
     6.     Do you feel that you could remain fair and impartial in this assignment?
     7.     Can you remain objective?
C.   Ethics
     1.       Have you read the Code of Professional Responsibility for Interpreters ?
     2.       Do you understand your duties with respect to the Court Code of Professional
              Responsibility?
     3.       Do you promise to adhere to the Code of Professional Responsibility during these
              proceedings?

D.   Professional Scope
     1.       Are you currently registered with any interpreter services or state agencies. Please name.
     2.       Have you interpreted in any other state? What are their requirements for interpreting?
     3.       What languages do you interpret?
     4.       What language do you consider your first or strongest language?
     5.       How long have you been communicating in these languages?
     6.       What formal language training have you received?
     7.       Have you taken any formal interpreter training?
                      a. When did you take the training?
                      b. How long did the training last?
                      c. What did the training entail?
     8.       Did you graduate from a college Sign language interpreter training program?
     9.       In what settings have you interpreted?
                      a. What form of interpretation did you use in these settings?
                            i. simultaneous
                            ii. consecutive
                            iii. sight interpretation of documents
                      b. How many times have you interpreted in these settings?

E.   Other
     1.       Have you ever been disqualified from interpreting in any assignment or
              proceeding or have you had any disciplinary actions initiated from your
              professional association? Please explain.