Spanish for American Lawyers

The basic goal is to focus on acquiring a working legal vocabulary in Spanish which will enable one to deal with Spanish speaking immigrants, resident aliens and citizens who use Spanish as their primary language. The course will focus on legal issues that largely impact the Spanish speaking client. We cover major areas of the law such as family, immigration, criminal, torts, employment, taxes/business, property, inheritance and small business issues. We invite several guest speakers who are experts in these fields to add dimension to the material we are studying. We also consider legal issues within a cultural context.

This course is intended for individuals who have an acceptable knowledge of Spanish typically attained by having studied Spanish three or four semesters in college. Individuals who have an equivalent working knowledge of Spanish are also welcome. Fluency in Spanish is not essential.

This course is not intended to enable you to function as a legal interpreter. It is intended to enable you to deal with Spanish speaking clients. You will, however, acquire a facility in interpreting common legal issues in Spanish. You will also become familiar with interpreting key documents such as birth, marriage and death certificates, and immigration documents which are often central to your client's legal problems.