Legal Interpreting Guidelines in Nebraska

Legal Language Services ranks Nebraska as a state with moderately regulated legal interpreting requirements.

Requirements for Certified Interpreters in Nebraska

Excepting Spanish-language and ASL cases, Nebraska does not require certified interpreters for any legal proceeding.

Nebraska state authorities periodically offer exams, both written and oral, for certification based on the guidelines of the Consortium for State Court Interpreter Certification.

The state of Nebraska also offers federal court certification and accepts Court Interpreter Certification Certificates from any state which is a member of the National Center for State Court’s Consortium for Language Access in the Court.

Nebraska offers certification in 21 languages:

  • Arabic
  • Bosnian
  • Cantonese
  • Chuukese
  • Croatian
  • French
  • Haitian Creole
  • Hmong
  • Ilocano
  • Korean
  • Laotian
  • Mandarin
  • Mashallese
  • Polish
  • Portuguese
  • Serbian
  • Somali
  • Spanish
  • Tagalog
  • Turkish
  • Vietnamese

Classification of Interpreters in Nebraska

The Nebraska Judicial Department defines legal interpreters in the following three ways:

  • Certified Interpreter: An interpreter who has attended a two-day orientation seminar, scored at least an 80% on the written examination, scored at least a 70% on the three-part oral certification exam, passed a criminal background check, and who abides by the Court Interpreter Code of Professional Ethics.
  • Registered Interpreters: An interpreter who has attended a two-day orientation seminar, scored at least an 80% on the written examination, scored at least a 50% on the three-part oral certification exam, passed a criminal background check, and who abides by the Court Interpreter Code of Professional Ethics.
  • Other Interpreters: An interpreter who has attended a two-day orientation seminar, scored at least an 80% on the written examination, either has not taken the oral exam or did not achieve 50% or higher on each of the three sections, passed a criminal background check, and who abides by the Court Interpreter Code of Professional Ethics.

Not all venues in Nebraska require certified interpreters, except in Spanish-language and ASL cases. Please consult with Legal Language Services for the rules pertaining to your specific venue and language.

Common Languages Spoken in Nebraska

According to a recent American Community Survey, approximately 9.55% of the Nebraska population speaks a language other than English.

What’s more, almost 86% of the non-English speaking population in Nebraska speaks one of the following 10 languages:

  • Spanish
  • German
  • Vietnamese
  • Arabic
  • French
  • Chinese*
  • Other specified African languages
  • Czech
  • Cushite
  • Tagalog

Other languages spoken in Nebraska include Hindi, Polish, Korean, Japanese, Italian, Tamil, Russian, Dakota, Kurdish, Thai, Ukrainian, other specified North American Indian languages, Mandarin, Portuguese, Bengali, Kru/Ibo/Yoruba, Telugu and Dutch.

*This table was created based on respondents’ written answers, the majority of whom wrote “Chinese” while others specified “Cantonese” or “Mandarin.”

Judicial Districts in Nebraska

There are 12 judicial districts in Nebraska that encompass 93 counties:

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  • 1st Judicial District of Nebraska
    Counties: Clay, Fillmore, Gage, Jefferson, Johnson, Nemaha, Nuckolls, Pawnee, Richardson, Saline, Thayer
  • 2nd Judicial District of Nebraska
    Counties: Cass, Otoe, Sarpy
  • 3rd Judicial District of Nebraska
    Counties: Lancaster
  • 4th Judicial District of Nebraska
    Counties: Douglas
  • 5th Judicial District of Nebraska
    Counties: Boone, Butler, Colfax, Hamilton, Merrick, Nance, Platte, Polk, Saunders, Seward, York
  • 6th Judicial District of Nebraska
    Counties: Burt, Cedar, Dakota, Dixon, Dodge, Thurston, Washington
  • 7th Judicial District of Nebraska
    Counties: Antelope, Cuming, Knox, Madison, Pierce, Stanton, Wayne
  • 8th Judicial District of Nebraska
    Counties: Blaine, Boyd, Brown, Cherry, Custer, Garfield, Greeley, Holt, Howard, Keya Paha, Loup, Rock, Sherman, Valley, Wheeler
  • 9th Judicial District of Nebraska
    Counties: Buffalo, Hall
  • 10th Judicial District of Nebraska
    Counties: Adams, Franklin, Harlan, Kearney, Phelps, Webster
  • 11th Judicial District of Nebraska
    Counties: Arthur, Chase, Dundy, Frontier, Furnas, Gosper, Hayes, Hitchcock, Hooker, Keith, Lincoln, Logan, McPherson, Perkins, Red Willow, Thomas
  • 12th Judicial District of Nebraska
    Counties: Banner, Box Butte, Cheyenne, Dawes, Deuel, Garden, Grant, Kimball, Morrill, Scotts Bluff, Sheridan, Sioux

Call Legal Language Services at 1-800-788-0450 to find Nebraska interpreters who meet state interpreting rules for courtroom trials, hearings, depositions, arbitrations and other legal proceedings.

Please Note

The content provided on this page is for informational purposes only and should not be construed as legal advice. The information about legal interpreting guidelines in Nebraska is believed to be accurate at the time of posting; however, Legal Language Services is not responsible for any errors or omissions.