This article is devoted to the key problems which interpreters face when they participate in criminal proceedings. The paper also accumulates the opinion of legal experts on the topic under study. Respective problematic aspects have been identified by Russian and foreign researchers and practitioners who deal with the issue in practice, in criminal settings, and in the training fields, as well.The article deals with organizational and procedural issues related to an interpreter`s participation in criminal proceedings, interpreter`s competence identification, possible unforeseeable errors which may arise in the course of interpreting.The methodology combined theoretical and empirical studies, aggregated data from academic findings, analysis of some cases, information based on the activities of institutions which operate as linguistic and judicial expertise units, data received from specialists engaged in education policy. The paper also used the background provisions of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation which relate to the translator and interpreter's status.The paper consistently explores the components of interpreter's competence that are mandatory for his/her efficient work in court within the broader context of the overall interpreter's work within the criminal settings. Interpreters' extralinguistic capacities and personal features are also subject to the investigation. Further the interpreter's impartiality, rights with regard to the participation in the proceedings draws the audience attention, as well. Some other extralinguistic points are in the focus of consideration, as well.The findings have made it possible to identify some challenging points that refer procedural, recruiting, and qualification issues with regard to the interpreter's engagement in the criminal proceedings in Russia.