The following is a message from John Botero at the Judicial Council/Administrative Office of the Courts:
Good afternoon,
On Friday, the Judicial Council of Georgia voted to endorse the Model Administrative Protocol from the Commission on Interpreters. In his presentation, Justice Blackwell, commission co-chair, stated that the main purpose of this document is to serve as a guide for all levels of court when assessing and implementing a local language access plan and is not a mandate from the Supreme Court.
As a form of background, In 2015, the Georgia Supreme Court’s Commission on Interpreters received a $15,000 technical assistance grant to develop a model administrative protocol for court interpreting services. The National Center for State Courts made funding for this project available as part of a larger national initiative supported by the State Justice Institute. This grant allowed the Commission to draft an optional, locally adaptable, and step-by-step administrative guide for the provision of language services. The goal of this guide is to help state courts meet their obligations to provide interpreters and other language services. As the first of its kind in Georgia, the Model Administrative Protocol will promote the reliable and efficient provision of language services in state courts throughout Georgia both for persons with limited English proficiency and for those who are deaf or hard of hearing.
Please do not hesitate to contact us with any questions, or if there is anything we can do to assist in helping you develop a local language access plan. We ask you to please disseminate this document to your stakeholders.
Thank you,
John H. Botero
Program Manager, Office of Court Professionals
Judicial Council / Administrative Office of the Courts
Model Administrative Protocol, Final Version copy.pdf
