Language Services

The Language Services department provides interpreters for court proceedings at Franklin County Domestic Relations and Juvenile Court.

The department is located at 4001A – fourth floor, 373 S. High St., Columbus, Ohio, 43215.

Ensuring meaningful access to justice for individuals with limited English proficiency (LEP) and those who are deaf or hard of hearing remains a priority for the court. The program ensures compliance with federal mandates such as Title VI of the Civil Rights Act, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), and Executive Order 13166.

Language services works with several agencies and independent interpreters to cover interpreter requests.

Language Coordinators are responsible for scheduling, screening, and ensuring interpreters are properly trained in legal terminology and ethics. They also oversee the translation of essential court documents and provide training to court staff on best practices for working with interpreters

How to schedule an interpreter

Request an interpreter with this form.

If the language coordinator has a question or cannot fill your request for an interpreter the coordinator will contact you by email.

If you need to cancel an interpreter request, please notify the Language Services Department as soon as possible at DRJ_InterpreterRequest@fccourts.org.

Some things to know:

• Interpreters are not always available for the requested time. The more advance notice you can give, the more likely the request can be accommodated.
  
  
• In-person interpreters may not be available, especially for uncommon languages or in the case of requests made with short notice. In these cases a remote interpreter may be the only option.
  
  
• Requesters must include an estimated time length in their request. Interpreters are booked for the requested time. They may not be able to stay longer if more time is needed. If no time is given in the request, interpreters will be scheduled for one hour.
  
  
• Interpreters are not court employees. They work as individual contractors or through a separate agency.
  
  
• Interpreter requests are processed during normal court hours, Monday through Friday.
  
  
• If Language Services cannot schedule an interpreter, Language Line is available to all court staff. The telephonic service offers more than 200 languages.

Contact:

You can reach the Language Services Department at  DRJ_InterpreterRequest@fccourts.org.