Our interpreter is appearing in Sunshine Magistrates’ Court of Victoria with a client and his legal practitioner. Magistrates’ Court is the lowest level of court in Victorian court system, with the County Court of Victoria and the Supreme Court of Victoria judicially higher. Court can be stressful to all of us. Interpreters, as a special professional working between the non-English speaking client and other English speaking professionals, will have a huge pressure if they are not fully prepared before attending court. That’s why at Bringing Translation, we always ask our client to provide some background information to prepare even our interpreters are almost attending court every single day.
No matter if you are an applicant, defendant, witness, support person or a new practitioner, it is essential to understand court settings before attending. Courts in Australia have their traditions and certain manners to follow. We have seen many people who are representing themselves act inappropriately in court. This will definitely not be helpful for their case.
Victorian legal aid is an agency of the Department of Justice and Community Safety Victoria. They provide free legal services and information about the law. However, not everyone is eligible for their service. They need to test your income, assets, number of dependants and so on. The best way to find out if you are eligible is to contact them.
There are also some non-profitable government organisations in Victoria which are superficially established for Aboriginals or Torres Strait Islanders. If you are identified as one of them, you can always tell the court staff – they can link you to support services.
Edit: Bridging Translation