In-person and Online
ABA Conference on Language, Justice, and Technology
March 1 - 2, 2024, Seattle University School of Law, Seattle, WA
This conference was sponsored by the ABA Standing Committee on Legal Aid and Indigent Defense and Seattle University School of Law, and cosponsored by Washington State Administrative Office of the Courts, the ABA Center for Public Interest Law, ABA Commission on Disability Rights, ABA Commission on Domestic and Sexual Violence, ABA Commission on Law and Aging, and ABA Section of Civil Rights and Social Justice.
Friday, March 1, 2024
Welcome Video
- Prof. Gillian Dutton, Associate Professor and Externship Director, Seattle University School of Law
- Jason T. Vail, Director, Legal Services Division, American Bar Association
- Christine Stoneman, Chief, Federal Coordination and Compliance Section, Civil Rights Division, U.S. Department of Justice
Community Perspectives: From Language Access to Language Justice Video
Language Justice is a concept that means affected communities design the services needed to go beyond minimum standards or thresholds to reach a holistic language services model. This session includes a panel of community members to share their experiences navigating the justice system; models for reducing language barriers; and advocacy efforts to move our courts towards language justice.
- MODERATOR: Gillian Dutton, Associate Professor and Externship Director, Seattle University School of Law
- Star G. Grieser, Chief Executive Officer, Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf
- Joann Lee, Special Counsel, Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles
- Odilia Romero, Co-Founder and Executive Director, Comunidades Indígenas en Liderazgo
- Andrea Salazar, Founder & CEO, We Amplify It
- Chi-Ser Tran, Supervising Attorney, Community Legal Services of Philadelphia
- Ana Trusty, Communications Director, Mujeres in Action
2019 MIE Winter Language Justice
2020 MIE Winter Unequal by Design
ENG Language Justice Toolkit for Organizers – Right to the City
ABA SCLAID Legal Aid Standards
SPAN Language Justice Protocols Assessment
Keynote Address Video
- Rachel Rossi, Director, Office for Access to Justice, U.S. Department of Justice
- Introduction by Anthony E. Varona, Dean and Professor of Law, Seattle University School of Law
Comments by Director Rachel Rossi
Courts Language Access Fact Sheet
Saturday, March 2, 2024
Innovation at the Intersection of Language Justice and Technology Video
This panel discusses the benefits and risks of machine interpretation, machine translation, and plain language models, from several perspectives: those creating technology, those working to ensure its appropriate use, and those it leaves out.
- MODERATOR: LeighAnne Thompson, Associate Director, TILE, Seattle University School of Law
- Claudio Fantinuoli, Research Associate, Mainz University/KUDO Inc., Germany - Presentation
- Michael Mulé, Deputy Director, Office of Justice Programs, Office for Civil Rights, U.S. Depart. of Justice
- Eliana Lobo, Safe AI for the Ethical Use of AI in Interpreting and Translating - Presentation
- Lucas Nunes Vieira, Professor of Translation Studies, University of Bristol, UK - Presentation
Emerging Issues for Translators and Interpreters Video
Interpreters and translators are a critical part of the work towards language justice. During this session, panelists share viewpoints on the language access and language justice approaches with attention to issues of cross-cultural communication, training and certification, and ethics considerations.
- MODERATOR: Kristi Cruz, Attorney, Northwest Justice Project
- Andreea Boscor, Federally Certified Interpreter, Spanish; ATA-certified Translator, Spanish into English - Presentation
- Carla Mathers, Attorney, SC:L ASL Interpreter
- Alena Uliasz, Language Justice Manager, California Rural Legal Assistance (CRLA)
Comprehension of Legal Discourse in Interpreter-Mediated Judicial Proceedings
New Trends in Courts: Language Justice, Plain Language, and Technology Video
This panel discusses challenges courts are facing in providing people-centered justice across language and culture and will suggest ways in which courts, working with the communities they serve, can create change.
- MODERATOR: Michael Blasie, Assistant Professor of Law, Seattle University School of Law
- Jonathon Lack, Commissioner, King County Superior Court - Presentation
- Ana Paula Noguez Mercado, Language Access Coordinator, Office for Access to Justice, U.S. Dept. of Justice
- Deenie Miller, Director of Language Access, Mississippi Supreme Court
- Sonya Rao, Postdoctoral Scholar, Language Access, American Bar Foundation
Closing Remarks Video
- Christine Stoneman, Chief, Federal Coordination and Compliance Section, Civil Rights Division, U.S. Department of Justice