Court Interpreting Services

Prism Language Solutions supplies court interpreters to attorneys, law firms and courts across the United States for hearings, arraignments, trials, depositions and client meetings, in more than 300 languages. Where a state certifies court interpreters in the language, a certified interpreter is assigned; where no exam exists, we send an interpreter who has been qualified in that court before and tell you which it is. On-site court interpreting is billed by the hour with a two-hour minimum, and a written quote arrives within 60 minutes on business days.

Last reviewed September 11, 2026 by Sarah J, Prism Language Solutions

Most of the court interpreting we arrange is booked by a paralegal two or three days before the date, for a client the attorney has so far spoken to through a relative. The relative cannot interpret at the hearing, and the language the client actually speaks turns out to be Mam or K’iche’ rather than Spanish. We ask about that on the first call, because the wrong interpreter at an arraignment costs an adjournment and sometimes a client’s liberty for another week. Courts provide interpreters for many proceedings, but not for the hallway conference, the deposition at your office or the jail visit. That gap is most of what we do. Prism is a private agency and sits on no court vendor list; every quote says so.

• Certified translations prepared to meet USCIS requirements
• Human linguists only, matched to the subject
• Fixed written quote within 60 minutes in business hours
• One office in New York, linguists in every state

Court Interpreter for Hearings, Arraignments and Trials

Tell us the court, the case type and the expected length, and we match the credential to what that bench expects: a certified interpreter for a felony trial in a state that certifies the language, a registered interpreter the court already knows for a traffic matter in a rural county.

Deposition Interpreting Services

Depositions are where an inexperienced interpreter is found out fastest. There is no judge to slow the pace, the questioning attorney is often trying to unsettle the witness, and every word goes into a transcript that will be read back at trial. A good deposition interpreter works in the first person, keeps the witness’s register (a hesitant answer stays hesitant), asks for a repetition rather than guessing, and does not react when opposing counsel challenges a rendering. We brief the interpreter with the caption and any technical vocabulary the night before.

Attorney-client meetings and jail visits are consecutive assignments without a transcript; where the meeting is short or the client is out of state, video remote interpreting is often the sensible choice. A recorded deposition that needs transcribing and translating afterwards goes to our transcription service.

Certified Court Interpreter: What Certification Means in Your State

There is no national certification for state court interpreters. Each state credentials its own, most with oral exams developed through the National Center for State Courts and its Council of Language Access Coordinators, and those exams exist for a limited set of languages. California certifies interpreters in twelve languages (Arabic, Cantonese, Eastern Armenian, Farsi, Filipino, Korean, Mandarin, Portuguese, Punjabi, Russian, Spanish and Vietnamese) and classes interpreters of every other language as registered: screened for English and ethics, but not tested in the language. New York tests in English first and then runs oral exams in around two dozen languages; for the rest, the court relies on credentials.

Federal Court Interpreting Under the Court Interpreters Act

Federal courts run a separate system under the Court Interpreters Act, 28 U.S.C. 1827. In a proceeding instituted by the United States the presiding judicial officer must use an interpreter for a party or witness who speaks only or primarily a language other than English, or who has a hearing impairment. The statute fixes the modes (simultaneous for a party, consecutive for a witness, unless the judge orders otherwise on the record) and defines a federally certified interpreter as one who has passed the Administrative Office examination. That exam is currently offered in Spanish only; the Navajo and Haitian Creole programs are no longer offered. For every other language the federal courts use professionally qualified or language-skilled interpreters. We supply both categories, describe the credential plainly, and price a full federal day within the guide ranges on the pricing page.

Court Interpreting in Rare Languages

The calls we are proudest of answering are for languages the court’s own roster does not cover: Mam and K’iche’ for immigration and family matters, Karen in the resettlement cities, Chuukese, Tigrinya, Rohingya. No state certifies interpreters in these, so the question is whether the interpreter has been sworn in a courtroom before and speaks the right variety. Where no direct interpreter exists, courts sometimes accept relay through Spanish; we do that only with your agreement, because every relay adds a point where the meaning slips. For a rare language give us a week if you can.

How to Book a Court Interpreter

Send the request through the quote form, by email or by phone. An assignment in New York, Los Angeles, Houston or another city we serve regularly, in a common language, can usually be covered with two business days of notice. A rare language or a trial team needs a week or more. Send us:

• Date, start time, expected length, and whether the matter may run into a second day
• Court name and address, and the part or courtroom number if you have it
• Case type, whether there will be testimony, and the language (with the client’s country or region where it matters)
• Anything the interpreter should read beforehand: the caption, a charging document, a glossary

On-site court interpreting is billed hourly with a two-hour minimum, because the interpreter travels to the courthouse and holds the morning open whether the case is called at 9:30 or adjourned at 9:35. Waiting time counts. Translated exhibits for the same matter are handled under legal translation; firms that book regularly can read how we work with them on the law firms page.

Questions we get asked