Mentoring interpreters of new and emerging languages for Australian courts and tribunals

Bibliographic Data

ID11293681
AuthorsMiranda Lai (0000-0002-2038-1547, 5376 RMIT University , Melbourne , Australia, corresponding author), Erika Gonzalez (0009-0000-5264-659X, 5376 RMIT University , Melbourne , Australia)
Year2025
Volume44
Issue3
Pages315-346
Publication date2025-05-26
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueMultilingua (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0167-8507 • E-ISSN: 1613-3684
PublisherWalter de Gruyter GmbH (PUBLISHER • DE)
DOI10.1515/multi-2024-0062
OpenAlexW4407459031
LanguageEN
Citations received1
References cited29

Quality interpreting in courts and tribunals requires high competence in language and contextual knowledge, as well as interactional management and ethical reasoning skills. But a cohort of the interpreting workforce in Australia – particularly those from the so-called “new and emerging” language backgrounds – has been disadvantaged due to a lack of access to university or vocational training for interpreters. These interpreters, therefore, work in specialised areas such as courts and tribunals with little or no formal training. This paper describes a pilot project that operationalised Optimal Standard 3 of Australia’s Recommended National Standards for Working with Interpreters in Courts and Tribunals regarding the provision of mentorship to interpreters who are under- or untrained. The project comprised two stages: in Stage 1, interpreters attended a tailored professional development course on legal interpreting; then in Stage 2, a group of thirteen interpreters selected from Stage 1, plus four recruited mentors, participated in mentorship reflecting Optimal Standard 3. The outcomes show the potential applicability and utility of this Standard for its intended purpose. However, for such initiatives to be viable, they require additional support, including administrative and financial resources from the courts and other stakeholders, as well as a rethinking of interpreter employment models

Interpreter · Linguistics · Political science · Programming language · Computer Science · Interpreting and Communication in Healthcare · Military, Security, and Education Studies · Philosophy

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