[Court Interpreter] 4, The Three Modes: Which One, When

Lesson four of the free Quibank Court Interpreter course: the three modes. Courts recognize exactly three — simultaneous, consecutive, and sight translation. Summary interpreting is not a mode; it is a violation. And on the exam, every modes question is really a question about triggers.

Here are the triggers. Simultaneous — you render while the speaker keeps talking, slightly behind — carries everything said to others: the judge addressing counsel, other witnesses testifying. Consecutive — complete segments after the speaker pauses, notes allowed — carries anything the person must answer, which means all witness testimony. And sight translation turns a written document into speech, on the spot.

The federal model says it in one line: simultaneous for the proceedings, consecutive for testimony. Test trigger one. The judge and attorneys argue a motion that is not addressed to the defendant at all. Wait until it matters?

Summarize it afterward? No — you interpret simultaneously, in a low voice at the defendant's side. Everything said in open court must reach him as it happens. That whispered delivery has a name worth knowing: chuchotage.

Test trigger two. The clerk hands you a printed waiver-of-rights form for the defendant. Which mode? Sight translation — you render the document aloud in his language.

And note the boundary: you may read it to him; you may not explain what it means. Explaining is the attorney's job. And the switch. You have been whispering simultaneously at counsel table all morning; now your defendant is called to the stand.

You switch to consecutive for the question-and-answer testimony. The mode follows the event, not the person — proceedings are simultaneous, testimony is consecutive. Now the protocol around the modes. Speakers stay in the first person — the witness says I went home, and so do you.

But when you speak for yourself, you switch to the third person: the interpreter requests that the answer be repeated. That grammar keeps the record unambiguous about whose words are whose. And every procedural request goes to the judge — never directly to the witness or an attorney. Try it.

A witness is talking too fast for a complete rendering. Who do you address? The judge — asking that the witness be directed to slow down. The judge runs the courtroom; the interpreter borrows that authority rather than exercising her own.

Two physical rules finish the picture. Position yourself near the LEP person without blocking anyone's sightlines. And when interpreting testimony for the record, speak loudly enough for the whole courtroom — your rendering is the official evidence, so the judge, jury, and reporter must all hear it. Last: protect the instrument.

Accuracy degrades sharply with fatigue, so long proceedings call for team interpreting with rotation and scheduled breaks — and if you feel your accuracy slipping four hours in, you tell the court and request relief. An unfamiliar technical term mid-testimony works the same way: inform the judge, request a brief recess to prepare. Degrading silently is the one wrong answer. Recap.

Three modes, three triggers: to others — simultaneous; must answer — consecutive; document — sight translation. First person for speakers, third person for yourself, requests through the judge. Near the LEP person, loud enough for the record. And fatigue or unknown terms go to the court, never swallowed.

Next lesson: the terminology the exam actually tests — with prejudice, nolo contendere, and the idiom traps. Practice free at quibank.com/court-interpreter. See you in lesson five.