{"id":1165,"date":"2017-03-31T09:00:00","date_gmt":"2017-03-31T13:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/law.temple.edu\/ejc\/?p=1165"},"modified":"2021-11-23T19:08:42","modified_gmt":"2021-11-23T19:08:42","slug":"new-language-access-plan-pennsylvania-courts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/law.temple.edu\/ejc\/2017\/03\/31\/new-language-access-plan-pennsylvania-courts\/","title":{"rendered":"New “language access” plan for Pennsylvania courts"},"content":{"rendered":"

A 2015 report<\/a> by the Sheller Center was part of the advocacy that led to this week\u2019s announcement, by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, of a statewide \u201clanguage access\u201d plan<\/a> for Pennsylvania courts.<\/p>\n

The Center’s 2015 report, which focused on the state\u2019s Magisterial District Justice courts, found that people with limited English proficiency (LEP) were sometimes expected to proceed without interpretation services, or with \u201chelp\u201d from friends or family. The Center initiated\u00a0its study after the ACLU filed two complaints with the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice, highlighting the lack of access to interpreters by two litigants in the Pennsylvania courts. In response to the efforts of a coalition of advocates for LEP individuals, the Administrative Office of Pennsylvania Courts finally developed a plan that represents a big step forward for Pennsylvania.<\/p>\n

The biggest challenge ahead will be implementation and monitoring of the plan in the state’s 60 judicial districts. \u00a0Sheller Center students are embarking on a follow-up project to the 2015 study to assess whether the language access needs of LEP individuals are, in fact, being met. “Our observations have shown the progress that courts have made towards providing language access services, but we have also identified many areas for growth,\u201d said Lisa Burns, a 2L working on the project as part of the Center’s Social Justice Lawyering Clinic.<\/p>\n

Click here for a WHYY report<\/a> summarizing the Supreme Court announcement.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A 2015 report by the Sheller Center was part of the advocacy that led to this week\u2019s announcement, by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, of a statewide \u201clanguage access\u201d plan for Pennsylvania courts. The Center’s 2015 report, which focused on the state\u2019s Magisterial District Justice courts, found that people with limited English proficiency (LEP) were sometimes … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":21,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"generate_page_header":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[5,16,23],"class_list":["post-1165","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","tag-access-to-civil-justice","tag-immigrants-rights","tag-social-justice-lawyering-clinic"],"yoast_head":"\nNew "language access" plan for Pennsylvania courts - Elder Justice Consortium<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/law.temple.edu\/ejc\/2017\/03\/31\/new-language-access-plan-pennsylvania-courts\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"New "language access" plan for Pennsylvania courts - Elder Justice Consortium\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"A 2015 report by the Sheller Center was part of the advocacy that led to this week\u2019s announcement, by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, of a statewide \u201clanguage access\u201d plan for Pennsylvania courts. 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