MCLD | The Midwest Center on Law and the Deaf

Communication with Police

State and local police and law enforcement agencies are required to take action to ensure effective communication with individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing. They are required to provide the accommodations that are necessary to ensure effective communication with you, such as qualified interpreters, CART, or assistive listening devices. They must give primary...

Courtroom Communication

If you expect to be in a state or local court for any reason, you or your lawyer must contact the court in advance to request the accommodations that are necessary for you to participate in and understand the court proceedings. The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) requires state and local courts to provide qualified interpreters, real-time captioning (also called...

Hospitals and Doctors

Doctors and hospitals are required under federal law (as well as many state laws) to provide deaf and hard of hearing people with equal access to their services. Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) requires public accommodations (which includes doctors’ offices and hospitals) to provide equal access to their programs and services. 42 U.S.C....

Providing Interpreters

Interpreters, captionists, and many other professionals serve as valuable resources to ensure that deaf and hard of hearing persons gain equally effective communication access to all kinds of programs and services. It is important that such professionals be qualified in order to ensure that the communication is equally effective. A qualified interpreter is defined as...

Our Mission

The Midwest Center on Law and the Deaf shall promote and protect the constitutional and civil rights of deaf and hard-of-hearing persons in the Midwestern United States.

Communication with Police

Courtroom Communication

Hospitals and Doctors

Providing Interpreters

Thanksgiving Eve Party

I am Deaf or Hard of Hearing

I am an Attorney or part of the Legal Community

Our Mission