Eau Claire County Circuit Court, Language Access Violation, Wisconsin 2023

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. government announced today that it has reached a settlement with the Eau Claire County Circuit Court in Wisconsin to resolve a complaint filed by the Zone Eau Claire Hmong Mutual Assistance Association alleging that the court did not provide adequate language support services to limited English proficient (LEP) users of the court.

The complaint alleged that the court required individuals seeking divorce to attend a class called ‘Families in Transition,’ but the class was only offered in English.

The U.S. government began working with the Eau Claire County Circuit Court in September 2017, when the complainant filed the complaint alleging that existing barriers in English language based divorce proceedings violate the prohibition against national origin discrimination contained in Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

Under the agreement, the court has begun taking action to address the concerns raised during the federal review, as well as current and future efforts to ensure the continued provision of comprehensive language support services for the ‘Families in Transition’ class, community participation, and the training of court staff interacting with LEP users.

‘We commend the Eau Claire County Circuit Court for its commitment to ensuring significant access to the courts for all, regardless of national origin,’ said Acting Assistant Attorney General John Gore. ‘This collaboration between the U.S. government and the Eau Claire County Circuit Court will improve the court’s ability to provide equal access during the entire judicial process.’

This complaint was resolved as part of the efforts of the Federal Coordination and Compliance Section (FCS) of the Civil Rights Division to ensure that state courts comply with Title VI language access requirements. No LEP individual should be denied access to justice because a court fails to provide language services.

The FCS court team provides policy guidance and technical support to state court systems and undertakes enforcement actions nationwide.

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