In Slovakia, the official language in administrative offences proceedings is the Slovak language.
This means that proceeding of the administrative authority as well as the court hearings will be held in Slovak. All court documents, including protocols of hearings and the judgement in a later stage itself will be prepared in Slovak.
If you do not speak or understand Slovak, you have the right to request an interpreter free of charge. You have the right to use the language you speak and understand at all stages of the proceedings. However, the court is not obliged to provide an interpreter if you speak and understand Slovak, but prefer to use another language in the court.
In addition, the judge cannot refuse to give you an interpreter just because your lawyer speaks Slovak.
If you suffer from any impairment to your hearing, vision or ability to speak, the court must ensure that you receive an interpreter who can translate the proceedings not only in the language that you understand, but that the interpretation is provided in a manner that is appropriate for you.
Language of national minorities
In Slovakia, there are some special rules on the use of national minorities languages that apply to an administrative proceeding, not to a court proceeding.
A citizen of the Slovak Republic who is a person belonging to a national minority in Slovakia and who has the right to use the language of a national minority according to the Act on the Use of Languages of National Minorities has the right to act before an administrative authority in the language of a national minority in a municipality where the proportion of persons belonging to that minority reaches at least 20% of population. (Following the next national census in 2021 this rate will be lowered to 15%.)
Municipalities and regional state bodies are considered as administrative authorities that may decide some kind of minor offences (in Slovak: priestupky) or other administrative offences (in Slovak: iné správne delikty). Therefore, an administrative offence proceeding before a municipality or a regional state body is covered by an obligation to allow a member of national minority to act in the language of that minority.
The administrative authorities are obliged to provide members of minority with equal opportunities to exercise their rights. The decision of an administrative proceeding will be issued also in your minority language.