Vol. 77, No. 4, April 2004

• Court improves access to justice, administers first oral test for court interpreters
• Spanish-English glossary of legal terms guides attorneys and clients through complicated criminal process
• Governor proclaims "Wisconsin's Women Jurists Day"
• New trust account rule close to finalization
• Mandatory court form updates include small claims, criminal, earned release, truth-in-sentencing
• State Bar petition seeks paralegal licensure and regulation

Court improves access to justice, administers first oral test for court interpreters

The Director of State Courts' orientation training and testing program for people interested in becoming certified court interpreters now includes an oral certification exam. The oral exam is a step toward formalizing the role of court interpreters and improving access to justice to persons who are deaf or speak foreign languages, a result of SCR chapter 63, effective July 1, 2002.

To be certified, a person must attend orientation training; pass a written test that includes English proficiency, legal terms, ethics, and translation; pass the oral performance test; meet character and fitness requirements; and sign an oath to abide by the Interpreter Code of Ethics. The two-day orientation includes topics on ethics, courtroom protocol, civil and criminal terminology, and procedure. Attendees are added to a roster maintained and updated by the Director of State Courts Office. The roster includes more than 320 people, 14 foreign languages, and American Sign Language.

Thirty-four people took the first exam for Spanish in March. This rigorous test, developed by the National Center for State Courts, simulates courtroom settings, and tests a person's ability to interpret direct- and cross-examinations and interpret court documents. Judges, attorneys, and clerks are strongly urged to use certified court interpreters when available.

For more information about the program and to view a roster of available interpreters, call (608) 266-8635.

For more information, read "New Interpreter Code of Ethics: Improving Court Access," by the Hon. Elsa Lamelas, published in the March 2003 Wisconsin Lawyer.

• To review SCR 63

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Spanish-English glossary of legal terms guides attorneys and clients through complicated criminal process

State Bar CLE Books recently released a Spanish-English glossary of legal terms, Critical Terms in Criminal Proceedings in Spanish and English, by attorneys Ronald Benavides and Luis Cuevas. This pocket-sized book addresses 70 critical terms in criminal proceedings, providing clear, plain-language descriptions of the criminal process in Spanish and English.

Both authors are practicing criminal defense attorneys. Benavides is in private practice and Cuevas is an assistant state public defender. "We wrote the book to promote consistency in the translation of terms and concepts critical to the legal process, especially in criminal cases," says Benavides. "We drew upon our courtroom experiences and the many hours we have spent translating legal concepts for Spanish-speaking defendants."

The glossary offers multiple ways to locate terms in the book and contains several useful appendices, including the Wisconsin courts' interpreter request form, the new Court Interpreter Code of Ethics, and a list of Wisconsin statutes related to court interpreters.

The glossary is available for $10, plus tax, shipping, and handling. To order call (800) 728-7788 or (608) 257-3838.

Governor proclaims "Wisconsin's Women Jurists Day"

Portraits of 16 Wisconsin women jurists were unveiled at the Milwaukee County Courthouse during "The Whole Tapestry: A Celebration of Wisconsin's Women Jurists" event on March 17. The celebration honored Wisconsin's pioneering women judges who no longer serve on the bench.

Chief Justice Shirley S. Abrahamson suggested the recognition project after noticing that some Wisconsin courthouses where women have presided do not display their portraits. Milwaukee County Circuit Court Judge Maxine Aldridge White developed the program along with more than 40 volunteers, including judges, law professors, lawyers, and supreme court and State Bar staff. White worked in partnership with the National Association of Women Judges, which raised funds and in-kind donations from more than 30 law firms and law-related organizations, ensuring that no public money was spent producing the program.

"Learning about the lives of these extraordinary women and helping to secure their spot in our state's history has been incredibly satisfying and deeply humbling," White said. "I am honored to have this opportunity to bring their stories and their portraits to the people whom they once served - people who might not even be aware that a woman once sat on the bench in their county."

The portraits will be displayed permanently in the county courthouse in which the judges presided.

Awards. The American Judicature Society (AJS) also presented the Herbert Harley Award to Justice Ann Walsh Bradley and a Special Merit Citation to the Wisconsin Supreme Court during the celebration. Chief Justice Abrahamson, the first woman to sit on the Wisconsin Supreme Court and to become chief justice, joined officials from the AJS in presenting the award to Walsh Bradley. The award, named after the AJS founder, is the society's premier state award, reserved for individuals whose outstanding efforts and contributions result in substantial, long-term improvements to the justice system at the state level.

The Special Merit Citation, presented to the Wisconsin Supreme Court, recognizes projects and efforts that make significant contributions toward improving the justice system. The supreme court received the award for the Wisconsin Supreme Court History Exhibit, which teaches how judicial branch decisions affect everyday life, thus giving people the knowledge to understand the system and the importance of the judicial branch in our society.

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New trust account rule close to finalization

The Office of Lawyer Regulation reports that, although final action on the rule regarding lawyer trust and fiduciary accounts is still pending, it is anticipated that the Wisconsin Supreme Court will issue an order in the near future effectuating its new rule.

The new trust account rule will have an index, similar to a statute, with headings for its subsections that are expected to make it much easier to locate information and requirements. The new rule will provide greater detail than the current rule on trust account recordkeeping requirements. In addition, it will distinguish between trust accounts and fiduciary accounts with respect to recordkeeping and prohibited transactions. The new rule also will address computerized recordkeeping, electronic transactions, separate accounts for probate matters, and alternatives to overdraft notification. Furthermore, it will codify the Marine case, a 1978 Wisconsin Supreme Court decision that established what a lawyer must do prior to withdrawing fees from a trust account.

WisBar, the State Bar's Web site, will carry notice of the new rule as soon as the court issues an order making it effective. The court's order and the new rule will be published in Wisconsin Lawyer as soon as they become available.

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Mandatory court form updates include small claims, criminal, earned release, truth-in-sentencing

As of March 1, the Wisconsin Records Management Committee, an advisory committee to the Director of State Courts Office, which develops and distributes mandated forms, has updated and introduced the following forms. Key: New (N)/Revised (R)

Earned Release Program created by 2003 Wis. Act 33

• CR-263 (N) Petition for Determination of Eligibility for the Earned Release Program § 302.05(3)(e)
• CR-264 (N) Department of Corrections Approval to File Petition for Determination of Eligibility for the Earned Release Program § 302.05(3)(e)
• CR-265 (N) Order on Petition for Determination of Eligibility for the Earned Release Program §3 02.05(3)(e)

Truth-in-Sentencing

• CR-251 (R) Verification of Date of Release to Extended Supervision § 302.113(7m)
• CR-253 (R) Order for Reconfinement after Revocation of Extended Supervision
• CR-255 (R) Referral by Department of Corrections to Sentencing Court § 302.113(9g)
• CR-260 (R) Order Concerning Sentence Adjustment § 973.195
• CR-261 (R) Verification of Time Served

Criminal

• CR-228 (R) Notice of Bail/Bond Forfeiture
• CR-229 (R) Notice of Bail/Bond Forfeiture and Forfeiture Hearing
• CR-243 (R) Annual Report of Crime Prevention Organization

General

• GF-102 (R) Exhibit List
• GF-103 (R) Exhibit List Continuation
• GF-110 (R) Notification to State Historical Society
• GF-130 (R) Minutes
• GF-146 (R) Order Appointing Court Commissioner
• GF-153 (R) ADA Accommodation Request
• GF-156 (R) Reminder Notice (CCAP only form)

Criminal Not Guilty by Reason of Mental Disease or Defect (NGI)
Note: All NGI forms have been renumbered.

• CR-270 (R) Order for Examination under § 971.16
• CR-271 (R) Order of Commitment
• CR-272 (R) Order for Predisposition Investigation
• CR-273 (R) Order for Supplementary Mental Examination
• CR-274 (R) Order for Conditional Release Plan
• CR-275 (R) Order for Placement
• CR-276 (R) Order on Petition to Revoke Conditional Release

The following NGI forms are replaced by forms CR-270 - 276 above.

• CR-216 Order for Examination under § 971.16
• CR-217 Order of Commitment for Institutional Care
• CR-218 Order for Conditional Release Plan
• CR-219 Order of Commitment for Conditional Release

Forms, summaries, background, and information on using standard court forms are available in PDF or MS Word format at www.wisbar.org/forms. For more information, contact Judy Mahlkuch at (608) 266-7143.

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State Bar petition seeks paralegal licensure and regulation

In February, the State Bar petitioned the supreme court for a rule regarding paralegal licensure and regulation. A product of the State Bar Paralegal Practice Task Force, the petition recommends that the court, as part of its constitutional authority in Article VII over the administration of courts and its authority over the practice of law, regulate individuals who use the occupational title of "paralegal."

The task force was created in response to concerns expressed over unmet legal needs of lower-income individuals and concerns of state paralegal groups over what constitutes a career as a "professional" paralegal. Currently, with no professionalism standards or requirements, anyone - regardless of training or experience - can claim to be a paralegal.

The recommendations include:

Definition: Paralegals work under an attorney's supervision, and perform services that, absent the paralegal, the attorney would perform.

Education and training: Paralegals are required to complete 18 semester credits from a qualified paralegal studies program. Attorneys completing the proper coursework could work as paralegals.

Licensure based on experience: A three-year window allows individuals who currently provide paralegal services to apply for licensure if they obtain at least three credits of continuing paralegal education in ethics and provide documentation from
a supervising attorney that they have performed paralegal services for at least 4,800 hours during the past five years.

Continuing education requirement: Paralegals must complete at least 10 hours of continuing paralegal education during each two-year reporting period.

Ineligibility: Individuals cannot be licensed as paralegals while their law license is revoked or suspended, or if they have been convicted of a crime involving moral turpitude or if they lack good moral character.

Rules of ethics: A set of ethical rules, similar to those that regulate attorneys under SCR chapter 20, will guide paralegals.

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