With a growing number of foreign nationals facing trial in South Korea, interpretation services are increasingly at a premium, though there appears to be much room for improvement in their quality and interpreters' working conditions.

According to the Supreme Court on Monday, 3,789 foreigners faced criminal trials in South Korea in 2014, up from 3,243 in 2012. The figure doesn't include civil or family court cases.

By the Supreme Court's count, there were 1,736 registered interpreters for 29 languages as of 2015, with Chinese interpreters leading the way at 329, followed by 314 interpreters for English, 224 for Japanese and 133 for Vietnamese.

Courts usually post job notices on their websites or accept recommendations from government agencies or research institutes.

Candidates are tested on their language proficiency and legal knowledge, and courts also run criminal background checks.

And with an increasing demand for interpretation in courts, those currently in the field say more steps should be taken to ensure quality and consistency of interpretation services.

"The Seoul Central District Court offers a two-hour training session per year for interpreters," said Joo Mi-hye, a 57-year-old who interpreted in the high-profile Itaewon murder trial last month, when U.S. citizen Arthur Patterson received a 20-year jail term for murdering a South Korean student.

"But there are no separate sessions for different languages. And some interpreters who have been hired often complain that they never hear back from the courts," Joo added.

Court interpreters receive 70,000 won ($58) for their first 30 minutes, and 50,000 won for each ensuing 30-minute period. Active interpreters say they should be compensated more for taking on challenging cases, or they'd be discouraged from interpreting under public scrutiny in high-profile trials.

A 2012 report by the Korean Institute of Criminology said South Korea should adopt a U.S.-style certification program for court interpreters, and also said two interpreters should be present at each trial, with one monitoring accuracy of the other. (Yonhap)