Posted: February 22, 2012
Helping hard of hearing clients by Cincinnati lawyer as the title of this article is no accident. Nor is it just talk. I learned through experience with a hard of hearing client. My personal injury car accident client was particularly adept at reading lips and her hearing loss developed over time so she spoke almost normally. When dealing face on we could communicate well, as she was reading lips. Or at least I though that. But there may have been some nuance she missed. When it came time to have her deposition taken she wanted me to get a interpreter. I had the foresite for this and had asked counsel to get an interpreter. But my client wanted an interpreter at our private preparation session. She felt that things would be more understandable if the interpreter was used. On the phone we communicated through a special service that had me talking to a person that was signing to heron video. The deposition preparation went beautifully. We had an excellent interperter and I was confident my client understood everything we discussed. I was glad that I had gotten an interpreter so I knew there would be no misunderstandings. I did not fully realize this before my cliet asked for one to be there. Attorneys You Are Legally Obligated to Provide an Interpreter at Your cost Title III of the Americans with Disabilities act requires places of public accommodation to be accessible. This includes lawyers offices. There is an obligation to effectively communicate with your client. Unless a lawyer can effectively and accurately comminicate with their client there is a grave risk of not understanding the client's problems and giving incorrect service. Similarly clients may not understand what is being said too them. It is also important to get a qualified interpreter and not just a family member. I found Deaf Choice Inc to provide excellant interpreters. Finally unless this is an appropriate court cost the lawyer must bear the cost of an interpreter as the cost of doing business
