The new Venezuelan Criminal Procedure Code – providing for oral trials, as opposed to the old system, characterized by written communications – protects the language rights of those who do not speak Spanish and entitles them to court interpreting. However, it does not allude to the role of court interpreters. Within this uncertain scenario (in which training programs and regulatory frameworks do not exist) Venezuelan court interpreters can take on a dual role: facilitating communication within the legal system on one hand, while serving as social actors on the other hand. Thus, they not only face the intellectual challenge of adapting to, controlling, or helping to guide the changes it entails. Only by assuming their roles as social actors will interpreters be able to face the challenges posed by the new Criminal Procedure Code, and thereby benefit from the system’s constraints.