Presents findings from a review of 145 documents in 11 languages from 25 countries analyzing worldwide standards of practice in the field of interpretation. Increased migration and the presence and promotion of “language access laws” in industrialized nations are creating an urgent demand for professional interpreters who adhere to a uniform set of “standards of practice”. Most professional interpreters adhere to “codes of ethics”, but have not incorporated universally accepted “standards of practice” into their work. Comparisons of the differences between “codes of ethics” and “standards of practice” are described for the following areas: general interpreting, health care/medical interpreting, court and legal interpreting, conference interpreting, and sign language interpreting. The status of professional interpretation standards of practice are outlined for: Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Europe, Latin America, Asia, the Middle East, Africa, and the United States. Four appendices provide:(1) a list of reviewed documents, (2) a glossary of terms, (3) proposed term definitions, and (4) three influential documents related to medical interpretation. (IP)
