Section 5 - State Certified and Registered Court Interpreters(a) To receive designation as a state registered court interpreter, the candidate shall: (1) Submit to a criminal background check. Convictions for any felony or for a misdemeanor involving dishonesty or false statement shall disqualify a candidate from certification if such conviction is ten years old or less as provided in Tennessee Rule of Evidence 609;(2) Attend an approved ethics and skill building workshop;(3) Pass an approved criterion-referenced written examination;(4) Provide verification of United States citizenship or the legal right to work and remain in the United States;(5) Complete any required forms and pay any required fees; and(6) Complete any additional requirements established by the Administrative Director of the Courts pursuant to subsection (d). If an oral performance examination is available, a registered court interpreter must sit for the examination at least once every twelve months from the date he/she is designated as a registered court interpreter until he/she receives a passing grade to become a certified court interpreter. Failure to sit for the oral examination as required by this section shall result in the loss of designation as a registered court interpreter and the interpreter shall be required to begin the credentialing process anew.
(b)(1) To receive designation as a state certified court interpreter, the candidate shall: (i) Successfully meet the requirements to be designated as a state registered court interpreter;(ii) Pass an approved criterion-referenced oral performance examination; and(iii) Complete any additional requirements established by the Administrative Director of the Courts pursuant to subsection (d).(2) Interpreters with certification as a federal court interpreter shall be granted reciprocity as a state certified court interpreter after successfully meeting the requirements of (a)(1), (a)(2), (a)(4), (a)(5), and (a)(6) above. Interpreters with any other type of certification will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis to determine what steps the interpreters must take to be granted state court interpreter certification.(c)(1) Once credentialed, certified and registered court interpreters shall be required to renew their credentials every three years. The three-year effective period begins on July 1 following the date of credentialing. Renewals are from July 1 of one year to June 30 of the third year for three-year periods.(2) Renewing credentials requires the following:(i) Providing documentation of 18 hours of approved continuing education (CE) credits received during the three- year period. A CE credit is equal to one contact hour in the classroom. A minimum of 12 of the 18 hours must consist of foreign language or interpreting skills training. The Administrative Director of the Courts is authorized to adopt policies and procedures necessary to implement this provision of the rule; and(ii) Completing any required forms and paying any required fees.(d) The Administrative Director of the Courts shall determine appropriate examination registration fees as well as examination eligibility requirements, requirements for successful completion of examinations, and penalties for unsuccessful completion of examinations. The Administrative Director of the Courts also has the authority to impose additional requirements for an interpreter to earn, retain, or reinstate status as a registered or certified interpreter. The director is authorized to adopt policies and procedures necessary to implement this provision of the rule. Commentary.
Comment 1. Court interpretation is a specialized and highly demanding form of interpreting. It requires skills that few bilingual individuals possess, including language instructors. The knowledge and skills of a court interpreter differ substantially from or exceed those required in other interpretation settings, including social service, medical, diplomatic, and conference interpreting. Due to the highly specialized knowledge and skills required in this profession, the Court has promulgated this rule to adopt uniform qualifications for interpreters serving in Tennessee's courts.
Comment 2. A "criterion-referenced" performance examination is one in which the required score is based on an absolute standard rather than one on the relative performance of examinees as measured against one another.
Comment 3. Interpreters are responsible for familiarizing themselves with the credentialing and renewal requirements. For additional information, interpreters should consult the interpreter page of the Administrative Office of the Courts' website, which can be accessed at www.tncourts.gov, or contact the Administrative Office of the Courts.