Language Access Project (LAP)

Community Legal Services - 030065

Abstract Number: 030065

April 2003

Community Legal Services (CLS) created the Language Access Project (LAP) to improve and expand its work with immigrants and other communities with limited English proficiency (LEP). In 1999, CLS reexamined the way they delivered legal services to LEP clients and decided it needed to make a concerted effort to ensure that LEP clients could receive high-quality legal services in their own language from the program. With the help of a grant by the William Penn Foundation, CLS established the Language Access Project (LAP). The Language Access Project seeks to:

• Heighten awareness of CLS and its legal services among limited English speaking communities and the agencies that serve them.
• Provide high-quality legal representation to persons with limited English skills.
• Address systemic problems facing limited English speaking communities through legal advocacy and select client representation.
• Assist communities with limited English skills in voicing their concerns in local and national policy making forums.

After establishing LAP, CLS made a number of changes to better meet the language needs of the LEP client community in Philadelphia. With the implementation of this project, CLS placed a greater emphasis on hiring bilingual staff, contracted with professional language service providers, developed internal guidelines for fairer and more efficient use of in-house staff for interpreting (oral communication) and translating (written documents), provided interpreting training to CLS staff, and established closer relationships with community organizations comprised of or serving LEP clients.

CLS provides services to LEP clients in their own language in a number of ways. In addition to using in-house bilingual staff, CLS contracts with two organizations for interpreting and translating services in the wide range of languages not covered by in-house staff. The vast majority of CLS language needs are provided through a local multilingual language broker that provides in-person interpreters and translators for written documents in over 30 languages. In addition to these services, CLS also uses a commercial phone based interpreting service that can provide interpreters instantaneously in over 140 languages. CLS has partnered with other legal services providers in Pennsylvania to negotiate a discounted statewide rate for phone based interpreting services. The costs to the CLS of using contracted language service providers whenever they are needed has been relatively low: it has amounted to approximately one quarter of one percent of its operating budget.

In addition to providing language accessible legal services, CLS also engages in targeted outreach to ensure LEP communities are aware of the services available to them. CLS promotes their services and has developed community partnerships with organizations and groups who have close connections with LEP communities in Philadelphia. In developing these partnerships, CLS reviewed and changed internal policies that may have discouraged partner organizations from making referrals to CLS, such as CLS' previous encouragement that ethnic organizations providing referrals assist with interpreting and translating needs of the clients they refer. This targeted outreach has contributed to the growth and strength of CLS partnerships that currently includes 25 organizations.

In addition to providing direct services to clients, CLS also engages in language rights advocacy to help shape policy that affects their clients. CLS has filed several civil rights complaints administratively based on the failure of agencies to provide language accessible services, and has worked to improve the services available to LEPs at welfare offices, unemployment offices, the Social Security Administration, courts and other entities. CLS has also offered comments to federal agencies establishing Title VI guidances on what federally-funded programs must do to meet their obligation to take reasonable steps to assure effective communication with LEPs. Recently, CLS offered input in response to the Legal Services Corporation's request for comments on LEP Guidance.

During its first three years of implementation, LAP helped CLS increase services to LEP clients by over 50%. CLS' services to LEP clients who spoke a language other than English or Spanish increased by roughly 250%. For more information on the Language Access Project, access the documents below and visit Community Legal Services' website at: http://www.clsphila.org/.

Contact Information:

Paul Uyehara
Community Legal Services
1424 Chestnut Street
Philadelphia, PA 19102
Phone: (215) 981-3718
Fax: (215) 981-0436
Email

Nathalie Emam
Community Legal Services
1424 Chestnut Street
Philadelphia, PA 19102
Phone: (215) 981-3725
Fax: (215) 981-0436
nemam@clsphila.org

Additional Information:

• CLS' Final Report on the Language Access Project to the William Penn Foundation (1.6mb, PDF)
• Tips on Interpreting (1.4mb, PDF)
• Family and Friends as Interpreters (1.4mb, PDF)
• CLS' Response to LSC's Request for Comments on LEP Guidance (PDF)
• Civil Rights Complaint Filed Against Pennsylvania's Department of Public Welfare for its Failure to Provide Language Accessible Services (154kb, PDF)
• Civil Rights Complaint Filed Against the Department of Justice's Office of the United States Trustee for its Failure to Provide Language Accessible Services (61kb, PDF)

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