Translating Handwritten Grievances and Affidavits (Spanish Version)

Ethical and Technical Challenges for the Court Interpreter and Legal Translator

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25 million consumers in the US have limited English proficiency, and when they formally complain about mistreatment by an attorney, doctor, builder, therapist, or other service provider, they often submit handwritten narratives in their native languages to a professional association or governmental agency.

CAT software can't read most handwriting, and these documents challenge a translator with spelling and grammar errors, poor penmanship, run-on sentences, ambiguous pronouns, confusing subjects and objects, etc. The Canon of Accuracy from various codes of ethics is difficult to apply when the source language is so ambiguous.

Similar challenges arise from handwritten affidavits filed in court in languages other than English, which judiciary interpreters must sight translate. Marco and his team at Texan Translation have translated thousands of these narratives and developed useful standards to help other translators do the same. Filling a need for more practical, hands-on training, this three-hour workshop uses realistic grievances handwritten in Spanish for attendees to practice translating.


Your Instructor


Marco Hanson
Marco Hanson

Marco is a federally certified and state licensed Spanish court interpreter, and is one of the authors of the book Firearms and Other Handheld Weapons. He has twenty-three years of experience in translation and interpretation, a Master of Arts degree in Spanish, and is a frequent conference speaker on language access topics at legal conferences. He is also an American Translators Association certified Spanish to English translator. He sometimes teaches court interpreting at the University of Texas and legal translation at Austin Community College. Marco is past president of the Austin Area Translators and Interpreters Association and the Texas Association of Judiciary Interpreters and Translators, and was the state's first Language Access Coordinator.


Course Curriculum


  The Ethics of Ambiguity (One Hour)
Available in days
days after you enroll
  Spanish-Language Exercises (Two Hours)
Available in days
days after you enroll

Frequently Asked Questions


When does the course start and finish?
The course starts now and never ends! It is a completely self-paced online course - you decide when you start and when you finish.
How long do I have access to the course?
How does lifetime access sound? After enrolling, you have unlimited access to this course for as long as you like - across any and all devices you own.
What if I am unhappy with the course?
We would never want you to be unhappy! If you are unsatisfied with your purchase, contact us in the first 30 days and we will give you a full refund.

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