2013 NLADA ANNUAL CONFERENCE LANGUAGE ACCESS SESSIONS

Effective Utilization of Different Strategies and Tools to Obtain Compliance – 11/7/2013 (Thurs), 8:30 – 10 am.  This session will review state and federal civil rights mandates and discuss enforcement strategies by examining strategies aimed at achieving compliance.  Speakers will highlight legislative advocacy, litigation, civil rights complaints, and administrative advocacy, integrating tools to incorporate a public campaign and galvanize community support.  Presenters: Jana J. Edmondson-Cooper, Georgia Legal Services Program; Shena Elrington, New York Lawyers for the Public Interest; Kate Meiss & Maria Palomares, Neighborhood Legal Services of Los Angeles County; Amy Taylor, Legal Services NYC.

Ensuring Access for All: Strategies for the Successful Passage and Implementation of Local Language Access Laws – 11/7/2013 (Thurs), 10:30 am – 12:00 pm.  In recent years, advocates across the country have mobilized to ensure the availability of language access services for their limited English proficient (LEP) clients in recognition of the critical role these services play. This session draws together lessons learned from successful language access campaigns across the country, including common hurdles that arise after the passage of local language access laws, strategies for addressing them, and suggestions for monitoring compliance to ensure that LEP clients receive the services to which they are entitled.  Presenters: Shena Elrington & Jennifer Swayne, New York Lawyers for the Public Interest; Sotivear Sim, Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles; Emily Tucker, Center for Popular Democracy.

Affinity Roundtable – 11/7/2013 (Thurs), 12:00 – 1:30 pm. 
Get your brown bag lunch & join us at the N-LAAN table!

Language Access in the Courts – 11/7/2013 (Thurs), 3:30 – 5:00 pm.  Achieving quality and comprehensive language access in the courts can present numerous challenges, requiring a wide range of strategies and approaches.  Panelists will discuss their efforts to improve the accessibility of immigration and state courts nationally, as well as within their home states.  Presenters:  Peter Chung, Los Angeles County Office of the Public Defender; Judge/Professor Bruce Einhorn, U.S. Immigration Court (retired)/Pepperdine University School of Law; Joann Lee, Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles; Christine Stoneman, U.S. Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division.

Collaboration and Cultural Competence: Providing Meaningful Access to LEP and Immigrant Communities – 11/8/2013 (Fri), 8:30 – 10:00 am. Serving LEP and immigrant clients requires cultural competence.  We will create awareness of cultural competence and support for the principles of working in respectful and collaborative ways with LEP and immigrant clients.  We will highlight successful culturally competent collaborations serving Southeast Asian and Latino communities. Presenters: Veronica Alvarado, Warehouse Worker Resource Center; Claudia Johnson, Pro Bono Net; Sotivear Sim, Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles; Jora Trang, Worksafe.

Language Access: the Work of National Organizations to Support State Efforts, 11/8/2013 (Fri), 10:30 am – 12:00 noon.  This session will highlight recent efforts at state Access to Justice Commissions , IOLTA Foundations, and the Legal Services Corporation (LSC) to provide information, support, and resources to court systems and the legal aid community.  Participants will learn about the language access work of ATJ Commissions in Hawaii, Illinois, Washington, DC and elsewhere; LSC’s efforts with data, technology and knowledge-sharing; and language access initiatives of the National Center for State Courts.  Presenters: Steve Grumm, American Bar Association; Mytrang Nguyen & Mara Pellittieri, Legal Services Corporation; Christine Stoneman, U.S. Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division.

By The Content of My Character:  Not the Color of My Skin, the Language I Speak, Who I Marry or Date or my Age, Sex or Ability – 11/8/2013 (Fri), 2:15 – 3:45 pm.  In honor of the 50th anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s March on Washington, we present a forum on diversity within our legal services community.  The forum will address the state of diversity in our legal services community: what the data shows, what some diverse colleagues experience in our community, and the best and worst practices around diversity in the community. Presenters: Lillian Johnson, Community Legal Services; Joann Lee, Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles; Yvonne Mariajiminez, Neighborhood Legal Services of Los Angeles County; Lillian M. Moy, Legal Aid Society of Northeastern New York; James Sandman, President, Legal Services Corporation.

Exploring Ethical Obligations, Interpreter Insights and Translation Techniques on a Budget – 11/8/2013 (Fri), 4:00 – 5:30 pm.  This session explores heightened ethical obligations attorneys should be aware of when representing LEP clients and tangible techniques to promote meaningful access for LEP individuals. Strategies include resources for obtaining interpreter services, skills for using interpreters, and tools to make written materials accessible to individuals with disabilities and readable in English and other languages to help your organization save time and money on translations.  Presenters: Jana J. Edmondson-Cooper, Georgia Legal Services Program; Moriah Nelson, Volunteer Lawyers Project; Maria Mindlin, Transcend; Ann J. Kim, Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles.