Best practices for new attorneys working with a foreign language interpreter during a civil deposition

During my career as a certified court interpreter and translator, there are various mistakes and pitfalls I have seen again and again. That’s why I’m writting about the best practices for new attorneys. Hopefully, after reading this article, you will understand what to avoid when working with interpreters and translators. Keep reading to find out how to improve your depositions.

Best practices for new attorneys: watch out for double negatives, triple negatives, and long, complex questions

The first tip you are going to learn about in this article is straightforward. Avoid double and triple negatives at any cost. They are confusing enough for native speakers, so think about the potential misunderstandings and increases in complexity while translating them. In English, double negatives usually turn the sentence or thought into a positive. However, in common usage, it might still be intended as a negative. Avoid any possible misinterpretation by phrasing your sentences without double or triple negatives.

Examples:

Isn’t it true that you did not go out that night?

Isn’t it true that you didn’t see the car that caused the accident?

The evidence is certainly not irrefutable.

Additionally, a general rule you should go by is “the simpler, the better.” Avoid complex sentences in a foreign language. This will prevent your client from looking like a liar simply because they failed to understand or misunderstood the question.

Let your client know they can ask for clarification or a repetition

Some people avoid asking questions or clarification for fear of being perceived as not intelligent or ignorant. Assure your client that they are always welcome to ask for clarification and repetition if needed. Some clients understand enough English to realize when something was not interpreted as they intended. They can simply state that it was not what they were trying to say. Please keep in mind that the interpreter is only going by what it is being said. He/she cannot change or add to the original statement for the sake of clarity. This is the case even if the interpreter is aware that their interpretation of the client’s statement does not make any sense.

Confusing words for Spanish speakers

There are various words and word groups that you should be keeping an eye out for. Whether the words are confusing and how confusing they can be, depends on how long the person in question has been in the United States and their country of origin. However, there are some common ones which you will find out about in the following:

Body parts

Often, clients will say hand when they are referring to their arm and said foot instead of saying leg. Though, the one that tops it all in Spanish is when they say “cintura”, for which a literal translation would be waist. However, they often do so while pointing to their lower back. One way to avoid these pitfalls is to have a precession or a so-called depo prep before doing the actual deposition.

Best practices for new attorneys: Autos and trucks

Car and truck have different translations throughout Latin America and even within the same country. Now add Spanglish to the mix, and you will reach an even greater level of confusion. The following illustrating examples are from Mexico and California.

The word troka could be either a pick-up truck, a semi with a trailer or without it, or a big truck.

Camion can mean either bus, truck, trailer, or semi-trailer, with or without the trailer.

The expression trailer can be used to refer to an actual semi, a trailer house, or just a trailer (as in a hitch cargo carrier and ramp).

Personally, I have typically seen people from Mexico say camioneta for a truck, as in the context of a pick-up truck.

Street names, addresses, and people’s names

A name in English most likely will sound totally different in another language. This can potentially create confusion when interpreted back into English. For example, the town of Curathers is sometimes phonetically assimilated to Corrales (corrals) in Spanish and, when interpreted back, can be lost in translation. Another example would be the expression of Ta va lu for (Top Value Supermarket). I had clients who said they worked at Home Depot, when in fact, they waited for work outside Home Depot as day laborers. Giving a list of names to the interpreters will also be of great help in avoiding confusion.

Give them a brief summary of what to expect and what kind of questions they will be asked

Instruct your clients to wait for the full interpretation of the questions even if they understand English. Also, tell them this will allow the court reporter to have a clean record of the proceeding (we know this, but they don’t) since he/she can only type for one person speaking at the time. Also, instruct them about what to do if there is an objection, what to do if they do not remember something, or if they feel tired. In addition to that, it helps if they understand the structure of the deposition.

Best practices for new attorneys: Hire two certified court interpreters for long depositions

For a long deposition (more than half-day), hire two interpreters. Interpreting is very taxing on the brain. Most courthouses and government agencies understand this and prepare accordingly. As there are multiple things happening simultaneously, it is recommended that interpreters switch every half-hour. Remember, it is helpful to have the second interpreter remain in the room. They can be there for extra support and will notice if something was not interpreted correctly or misinterpreted. It is always important for the interpreters to follow their code of ethics and be neutral parties in a deposition.

In conclusion, there are multiple things you should look out for when dealing with interpreters and translators and that represent the best practices for new attorneys. When working with multiple languages, there is always room for misunderstandings and misinterpretations. However, if you follow the recommendations of this article, you should be able to greatly reduce your chance of this. Keep the recommended tips of this article in mind for easier communication with all people who are involved. Thank you and good luck to you!