Almost 35 million people in the U.S. speak Spanish in their homes, up 211% from 1980.1 This is over 12% of the total U.S. population.2 “Hispanics are the nation’s largest and fastest growing minority group; at 46 million strong, they make up about 15% of the U.S. population. “3 In fact, in 50 years, it is predicted that Spanish will be spoken in more than half of all American households.4
Spanish is also one of the most frequently used languages in business, with more than 1.6 million Hispanic-owned businesses in the U.S.5 Latin America is one of our fastest-growing trade partners.6 Spanish is the native language of almost 350 million people, the official language in 21 countries, and an official language of the European Union and other international organizations.
Hispanics in the U.S. are an underserved community, requiring legal services spanning across substantive specialties, from family to immigration law, and from business to bankruptcy.
Attorneys looking to gain a footing in this growing market need to be able to communicate effectively with their Spanish-speaking clients. Not only is communication important in the business sense, but it is a legal and ethical obligation for attorneys practicing in the United States.
The ABA SPANISH LEGAL PHRASEBOOK is for attorneys, judges, law students, paralegals, law enforcement, educators, court administrators, and others seeking to communicate with Spanish speakers about the U.S. legal system. The easy-to-use format makes it an essential addition to any legal or reference library.
1. U.S. Census Bureau Press Release: New Census Bureau Report Analyzes Nation’s Linguistic Diversity; Population Speaking a Language Other than English at Home Increases by 140 Percent in Past Three Decades, Apr. 27, 2010, available at http://www.census.gov/newsroom/releases/archives/american_community_survey_acs/cb10-cn58.html.
2. Id.
3. Pew Research Center Publications, Paul Taylor and Richard Fry, Hispanics and the 2008 Election: A Swing Vote?, Pew Hispanic Center, Dec. 2007, available at http://pewresearch.org/pubs/652/hispanics-2008-election.
4. U.S. Census Bureau Press Release: Census Bureau Projects Tripling of Hispanic and Asian Populations in 50 Years; Non-Hispanic Whites May Drop To Half of Total Population, March 4, 2004.
5. Facts for Features: Hispanic Heritage Month 2009, U.S. Census Bureau, Sept. 4, 2009, available at http://www.census.gov/newsroom/releases/pdf/cb09-ff17.pdf.
6. Congressional Research Service, J. F. Horbeck, U.S.-Latin American Trade: Recent Trends and Policy Issues, Sept. 3, 2009, available at http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/row/98-840.pdf.