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  • File a Complaint

File a Complaint

The Interpreter Certification Board under the direction of the Utah State Office of Rehabilitation shall revoke, suspend, or restrict the certification/recognition of an interpreter who does not maintain certification or recognition requirements or does not abide by the Code of Professional Conduct (CPC). Complaints against RID interpreters should be filed with RID as well as the Utah Interpreter Program. To file a RID Complaint, click here. 

Complaint Form

Complaints Process & Procedures

*For more detail about Complaints/Disciplinary Proceedings see the full Policy & Procedures Manual

Jurisdiction

The Interpreter Certification Board (ICB) shall conduct investigations and hearings addressing complaints involving interpreters who are certified/recognized by the State of Utah. Jurisdiction over complaints regarding non-certified interpreters shall be maintained by the State of Utah Attorney General’s Office.

Filing a Complaint

A complaint may be filed by any person utilizing interpreter services in the alleged incident, any person having a direct interest in the occurrence specified in the complaint, or the Certification Director on behalf of such individuals.

UIP will accept complaints in any accessible format. Complaints must be filed within 30 days of the alleged incident and must state the specific action or actions in question, the date, time, location, and name(s) of all persons against whom ethical violations are being alleged.

Complaint Proceedings

The ICB will determine if it has jurisdiction over the complaint. If the ICB does not have jurisdiction or the complaint states a cause of action that the ICB cannot address, the ICB will inform the complainant in writing that the case will be closed. If applicable, the complaint will be referred to law enforcement or the Attorney General’s office.

The Certification Director will send a copy of the complaint and a response form, by certified mail to the respondent. The respondent has 30 days from the postmarked date to respond. The ICB will review the response and determine if a hearing is warranted. Multiple allegations against the same interpreter will be handled simultaneously. A complaint may not be brought against a respondent who is already involved as a plaintiff or defendant in a legal proceeding involving the incident identified in the complaint. After the legal proceeding has been decided, the complaint may be re-filed with the ESC within 30 days.

A complaint may be withdrawn at any time. The ICB reserves the right to proceed on behalf of/ without the complainant if it determines there is cause.

Hearing Process

The ICB chair will select 3 ICB members to be involved in the hearing. At least 2 of those 3 members shall be certified interpreters. The date, time, and location of the hearing shall be scheduled so as to be convenient for all parties involved.

At least 15 days prior to the hearing date, the UIP shall send the following information to the interpreter and the complainant:

• Date, time, and location of hearing.
• Names and professional affiliations of the members of the ICB who will hear the complaint, including identification of the individual who will chair the hearing.
• Procedures for objecting to any ICB member on the Hearing Committee.
• Names and affiliations of the complainant and respondent.

The complainant and respondent may each invite a representative such as an advocate, legal assistant, legal counsel, etc., to assist during the proceedings. Either party may present any evidence or present witnesses to give testimony as to any relevant aspect of the complaint. The meeting will proceed as a formal hearing, as opposed to a court of law and all in attendance may participate.

A majority vote is required to reach a decision. The Hearing Committee decision will be written and identify, in detail, the complaint, the evidence used in the decision, the relevant CPC citation(s), and the action to be taken, if any. The Hearing Committee will refer the decision and any disciplinary action to the USOR director. The USOR director, barring extenuating circumstances, will inform the respondent and complainant of the decision within 30 days of the hearing. Once an allegation has been dismissed, the complainant may not file any other complaints regarding that same incident.

Disciplinary Action

The determination of the type and severity of disciplinary action will depend on the severity of the complaint in terms of lack of professionalism, non-adherence to the CPC, the impact of the interpreter’s actions, etc.

There is a range of potential courses of action, and the Hearing Committee may elect to choose one, several, or none of the possible options listed below. The committee may also choose to create a course of action tailored specifically to the circumstances of the particular complaint.

• The Hearing Committee may elect to take no disciplinary action on the complaint.
• The respondent may be required to attend educational workshops, seminars, or classes that would help ensure exposure to the kind of information that would aid the respondent to react differently in future situations. Workshop attendance could be included in the current CEH requirements for certification renewal, or could be levied as an additional requirement.
• The respondent may be placed on probation at the Hearing Committee’s directive, where his or her actions would be monitored for a specified length of time to ensure that professional and ethical conduct is maintained. The Certification Director will be responsible to oversee the monitoring process.
• The respondent may be assigned a mentor for a required time frame specified number of hours.
• The respondent may be placed on temporary suspension. The interpreter would not be permitted to provide interpreting services during the required suspension period. Suspension must not exceed one year in duration. In order to be eligible for renewal of certification submission of renewal form, payment of dues/fees, and earning of CEHs must continue during this period. At the end of the specified period, the Certification Director will report to the Hearing Committee as to the current standing of the action. The ICB shall determine whether or not any and all conditions of the disciplinary action have been met. If the conditions are met, certification will be reinstated.
• The respondent’s certification may be revoked. This will necessitate the individual to wait for a specified length of time as determined by the Hearing Committee, then re-enter the certification process from the beginning by applying to take the Knowledge Exam and proceeding with full performance examination. The Hearing Committee will need to specify a point after which the individual is permitted to enter the certification examination process. A revoked certification may not be reinstated. All certification renewal requirements are also immediately revoked, however the interpreter will not be entitled to any refund or prorated return of fees/dues for the year in which the complaint is heard, and all CEH’s earned up to the point of the announcement of action will be null and void. Revocation of certification is an extreme measure and should be reserved only for situations consisting of the most intentional and severe malpractice.

Note: An interpreter whose certification has been suspended or revoked shall not under any circumstances be granted any type of temporary permit.