Spanish Interpreter

Overview

Position is responsible for facilitating effective and accurate interpretive communication between clients for the Public Defender Staff and clients. Primarily providing Spanish to English and English to Spanish translations, and/or Burmese (Primarily Chin and Karan) to English and Burmese (Primarily Chin and Karan) to English translation.

• Provides interpreting/translating services for public defender clients, family members and witnesses for court, meetings, interviews, telephone calls, etc.
• Provides translation services during jail visits, at crime scenes, witness visits, family visits, at court hearings and trials.
• Attends court sessions and aids attorneys in explaining the process to the client, as well as preparing the client for trial or plea agreements.
• Visits clients in jail and other correctional facilities.
• Meets in-house with clients and their family members, and consults with the attorneys in preparing their cases.
• Provides written translation of documents, including appellate briefs, for attorneys and clients.
• Analyzes, anticipates, and makes positive suggestions to solve issues related to Spanish/Burmese (primarily Chin and Karan) speaking clients. This includes aiding in the investigation of the case, interviewing Spanish/ Burmese (primarily Chin and Karan) speaking witnesses in the company of attorneys and/or investigators. This person has to be intimately familiar with court terms and process in order to effectively convey information to and from the client with their attorney.
• Participates in special public defender related programs and activities as needed.
• Prepares written translations of instructional and educational materials, correspondence, and forms from Spanish/ Burmese (primarily Chin and Karan) to English and English to Spanish/ Burmese (primarily Chin and Karan) for use by the clients, the staff, the public, and other individuals.
• Reviews translated material for accuracy of meaning, grammar and syntax.
• This list of duties and responsibilities is not intended to be all-inclusive and may be expanded to include other duties or responsibilities that management may deem necessary from time to time.

Minimum of a Bachelor's Degree in appropriately related field or equivalent work experience. Strong Spanish speaking background is required. Experience in translation of legal documents and native command of English and Spanish languages (written and orally). Indiana Supreme Court Certification is a plus. Have the ability to interact with people in varying positions and from different walks of life and a strong desire to work with the Latinx community, and a willingness to work under pressure while dealing with unexpected situations and deadlines.

Deep knowledge of different cultures within the Latinx community as well as different dialects from various Spanish speaking countries would be beneficial.

Work is performed in a standard office/courtroom environment. Travel may be required to outside locations for meetings with witness and to crime scenes.