I speak a second language that I did not advertise to my firm. A partner found out I spoke this language while at an off-site happy hour while I was chatting with a summer. Said partner now wants to bring me in as her on-call translator/note taker. I’ve seen other POC associates get roped into the same situation before, with no escape or capacity to actually practice law. Unsure how to proceed and would appreciate advice on how to navigate.

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Tell him you’re not fluent enough to do it in a legal context

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The exiting paralegal that warned me about this (and is currently serving this role) tried to tell the partner that I wasn’t “legally” fluent as well, but I guess the partner didn’t believe it. I’ll try to press the point again :/

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Can you frame it as an ethical issue? Because legal interpreters either do or should have specialized training. Ability to speak a language is not the same as being generally fluent.

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Yes - what the others said. Just tell her that you're not super fluent, and wouldn't feel comfortable translating legal terminology vs. conversational content.

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Never a good idea to rely exclusively on informal language interpretation, especially when the interpreter is a practicing attorney that isn’t their assigned counsel and even worse if there’s a court case involved. Hiring a 3rd party interpreter w/no conflicts and using certified translations of documents is good cya.

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Another issue with global languages is both mundane & legal terms vary across dialects, countries, even generations — rendering heritage speakers’ vocabulary mismatched or outdated. (Spanish has 10+ words for stapler!) Also many countries use a civil law system (vs. common law) with altogether different legal concepts let alone translations, so imparting that clear understanding to a foreign language speaker is that much more crucial. Don’t put your law license on the line for it.

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As an update— despite my concerns, the partner had me sit in for a meeting as a “trial” (that I was not allowed to bill for and had an actual translator there). My language skills were genuinely not up to par. After communicating this again in writing to the partner afterwards, I’ve been ghosted! Happy enough ending.

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Can you please provide some more context on your hesitation to handle the assignment?

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I’m not sure about that. I’m pretty sure we can also be liable for ethics violations / malpractice.

I worked with an attorney interpreter (for a pro bono deal) once who misunderstood our child client and didn’t understand that he had been injured. We have reporting requirements that may have been missed if the associate working with me hadn’t pushed further.

Not looking to put my license on (or anywhere near) the line because the firm doesn’t want to hire an interpreter.

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You have every right to turn them down. It's not a part of your job description to be their personal translator. Just say you're not confident enough in your language skills.

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