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Language Access Plan — Harris County District Courts & County Courts at Law (approved December 18, 2024) — posted on the court's own website — the court-procedure tier (standing procedures, policies, and preferences the court itself publishes), distinct from the TOPICs-registered local-rules tier (TRCP 3a registration applies to local rules). Operative requirements quoted verbatim; the posted document is the controlling text.
Texas > Harris County > District Courts and County Courts at Law
HARRIS COUNTY DISTRICT COURTS & COUNTY COURTS AT LAW LANGUAGE ACCESS PLAN. I. PURPOSE AND LEGAL FOUNDATION. This Language Access Plan (LAP) provides a framework for providing notice of the availability of and access to accurate, timely, and effective language assistance services for all limited English proficient (LEP) individuals. The Courts will provide meaningful access to LEP individuals in the form of Language Assistance Services (LAS) at no cost, subject to the appropriation of funds and resources by the County. … II. IMPORTANT TERMS. … Qualified, unlicensed interpreter — A competent interpreter who may be appointed by the court when the language required is not Spanish, and the court finds that an interpreter licensed in the necessary language cannot be found within 75 miles. The interpreter: Must be at least 18 years of age; Must be qualified as an expert by knowledge, skill, experience, training, or education under Texas Rule of Evidence 702; and May not be a party or interested individual to the proceeding. … V. PROVISION OF LANGUAGE ASSISTANCE SERVICES. B. Notice of Availability of LAS. The Harris County Courts will establish and post on their websites ways to request language assistance, including interpretation and translation services, available to LEP individuals, in English and non-English languages. 1. Public Notification, Outreach, and Collaboration. a. The Courts shall provide translated notices regarding the availability of cost-free language interpretation and translation services to LEP individuals. b. The notice shall include: The following statement: "Interpretation services for court proceedings are available at no cost. Translation services may be available at no cost, subject to court's discretion and availability of funds. To request these services, please contact ___." … C. Translated Vital Documents. 1. The Courts shall adopt criteria by which vital documents will be identified and prioritized for translation into foreign languages. … D. Interpretation Services. 1. The Courts shall adopt policies and procedures for identifying the need for language assistance services in court-related matters. 2. The Judge shall appoint an interpreter for an LEP individual in accordance with Texas law. a. Interpretation services shall be rendered by licensed interpreters and qualified, unlicensed interpreters, when permitted by law. b. Interpretation services may also be rendered by the Office of Court Administration (OCA)'s Texas Court Remote Interpreter Service (TCRIS), which provides licensed Spanish court interpreters at no cost to Texas Courts in all case types for short, non-contested and non-evidentiary hearings that would typically last 30 minutes or less. … 4. Within the scope of their job duties, multilingual members of a court's staff may provide basic information and generally assist LEP individuals in a foreign language. Bilingual staff may not serve as interpreters, unless otherwise licensed or qualified under Texas law. E. Data Tracking. … 3. Beginning in 2025, the Courts agree to provide the data collected in Section V(E)(2), and provided to the State Office of Court Administration by the Harris County Auditor's Office to the Office of County Administration for Harris County, within 60 days after the Auditor's reporting of the data. VI. EDUCATION AND TRAINING OF COURT STAFF. … B. The Courts will designate a primary point of contact for all LAS in each court. C. The Courts will provide LEP access training for all court staff promptly upon hiring and on an annual basis thereafter. D. Court staff shall be trained on remote and telephonic language interpretation services; how to use the associated technologies; and how to effectively communicate with remote interpreters. … VII. EVALUATION, REVIEW AND MODIFICATIONS. … The initial review of the LAP will occur one year following the adoption of the approved Harris County Courts' LAP, with subsequent reviews scheduled every four years, unless the Courts opt for an alternative timeline. VIII. COMPLAINTS. A. All complaints regarding any failure to comply with this LAP, any applicable federal statute or regulation, any state statute or regulation, or any local rule shall be submitted to the designee within the management of the District Court Administration and County Courts' Office of Court Management, as defined by the Courts' policies and procedures. … C. All complaints about interpreters who violate statutes governing interpreters or the Judicial Branch Certification Commission (JBCC) may be submitted to JBCC. IX. APPROVED: On December 18, 2024, the following judges approved the Harris County District Courts & County Courts at Law Language Access Plan: Honorable Latosha Lewis Payne, Local Administrative Judge, District Courts, Presiding Judge, 55th District Court; Honorable Toria J. Finch, Local Administrative Judge, County Courts, Presiding Judge, Criminal Court at Law No. 9.
Reviewer note: Own-site content fetched by us 2026-08-23 (Phase 5 page-denominator close; hashed custody). Complete document text quoted verbatim (whitespace-normalized); the posted document is the controlling text. Filed with the District Clerk December 19, 2024 (certified 7-page scan, read by vision; the provisions quoted are transcribed from the posted plan with elisions marked …, and the posted scan is the controlling text).
18 verbatim requirements from 5th Jud. Cir., M-2018-65 — sha256-hashed 2026-07-25.
2 verbatim requirements from 4th Circuit Administrative Order 1986-33A.