Towards ethics and best practices in distant public service interpreting in Poland

This paper explores ethical challenges faced by court interpreters in Poland, who, like their counterparts in other countries, are experiencing significant changes in their profession due to the shift from face-to-face to distant communication. Polish court interpreters have a code of ethics, but it only sporadically addresses the complexities associated with remote interpreting. Notably, both national and European legislation enabled court hearings to be conducted via videoconferencing well before the pandemic’s onset. An analysis of court guidelines and procedural rules reveals that the ethical principles and professional standards for on-site and remote interpreting are largely aligned. Consequently, a radical overhaul of these principles and standards appears unnecessary. Instead, there is a need to clarify and refine them to raise awareness among interpreters, litigants, and members of the judiciary about specific challenges posed by remote interpreting.