Frequently Asked Questions

Court interpreters are trained to interpret for the rigid, formulaic needs of formal adversarial proceedings such as depositions, hearings and trials. These proceedings lead to rulings and decisions by judicial officers or juries. In contrast, mediation is an informal, non-adversarial, collaborative process in which the participants themselves decide the outcome, i.e., whether or not to settle their case with an agreement that they create for themselves. The mediator's duty is to facilitate open communication among the parties in ways that promote each party's 'self-determination.' Thus, the goals, purposes, communication styles, nuances, terms and concepts of mediation are just about the polar opposite of those used for court processes. As interpreters can't interpret what they don't understand, they at least need to learn the fundamentals of mediation to be competent to interpret in this context.