Deaf law student in Ireland wins discrimination claim and makes history
ALEX (DAILY MOTH): A Deaf law student in Ireland, Sofiya Kalinova, won a discrimination claim against Griffith College after she was told that she would have to pay for interpreters for a 10-week course.
I was able to interview Sofiya. I asked her whether deaf students in higher education in Ireland face barriers with interpreters.
She explained that public universities in Ireland do provide interpreters and that she received her law degree from Sutherland School of Law, University College Dublin.
She then wanted to attend the Honorable Society of King’s Inns, which is a law school that provides training and admitting legal professionals who wish to be awarded the degree of Barrister-at-Law necessary to be Called to the Bar by the Chief Justice of Ireland, a specific type of lawyer who specializes in court advocacy and giving legal opinions.
SOFIYA KALINOVA: In Ireland, we have two different types of lawyers. Both are equally recognized as lawyers, but there are different exams and different duties. I picked the barrister field. (Shows sign for barrister). I felt this would give me more power and freedom to stand up for my clients in court settings. The other type, a solicitor (shows sign) works outside of a court setting.
ALEX: So, Sofiya wanted to attend the King’s Inns to study to become a barrister. But before she could do this, she was required to pass five entrance exams. To prepare, she wanted to take a preparatory course at Griffith College, a private college.
SOFIYA: I asked them if they could provide an interpreter. They said “no” and that they had a policy that if sign language users wanted an interpreter, they would have to pay for it. They had a policy in writing that said this. I was very surprised and astonished.
ALEX: The Irish Times explained that Sofiya filed a complaint with the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) arguing that Griffith College violated the Equal Status Acts 2000-2018, which is Ireland’s anti-discrimination law.
WRC’s adjudicator determined that Griffith College’s policy violated the Equal Status Acts 2000-2018, ordered the college to pay 3,000 euros to Sofiya and re-evaluate its policy.
Sofiya said Griffith College might appeal no later than 42 days from the date of the decision and she’s waiting on that, but for now, she feels that she’s made a significant impact.
SOFIYA: It was very challenging for me to sue a huge institution. I’m just one person up against them and their legal team. I was very nervous but I was confident that I would win. I was still nervous. My legal team said I could accept a settlement but I didn’t want that. I didn’t care about the money. I wanted to prove that the deaf community has rights, the right to access our language, and access to education. I’m the only person in Ireland studying in the law profession, so if I face a barrier, it means there will be barriers for others with disabilities, including deaf people. So I had to break that barrier so more deaf people can equally access and enter the legal profession confidently. So I am very happy we won this case. It is for the young generation that will come after me.
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ALEX: Sofiya said she managed to pass the King’s Inns' five entrance exams on her own, studied there part-time for two years, and upon completing her 13 bar exams, she expects to attend a swearing-in ceremony this year and start practicing as a Barrister in Ireland.
Sofiya said she is the first deaf ISL user in Ireland to be admitted to the degree of Barrister-at-Law at the Honorable Society of King’s Inns. She will also make history as the first-ever deaf person to be called to the Irish Bar this year.
She is originally from Bulgaria and when she moved to Ireland to study law, ISL and English were her foreign languages.
SOFIYA: I want all the Deaf people who are watching this right now to know that if you want something, you have to fight for it and not give up. There may be hard times but it’s just like storm clouds — they will pass. You will have good times. You will have challenging times. But when you achieve your goal, you will feel satisfied.
Note: Sofiya was represented by a legal team from the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission (IHREC).