1. The Path to Justice: Migrant and Refugee Women’s Experience of the Courts Report prepared for the Judicial Council on Cultural Diversity JCCD

2. Key Issues: Before Court Communication Barriers (Major issues) Attending Court Unique forms of violence

3. Before court Barriers to reporting family and domestic violence Lack of knowledge of legal rights Lack of financial independence The impact of pre-arrival experiences and traumatic backgrounds

4. Uncertainty about immigration status and fear to deportation The cost of engagement with legal system

5. Communication barriers Working with interpreters Lack of clarity who is responsible for engaging an interpreter The skill of interpreters being engaged Unethical and poor professional conduct by interpreters

6. Major issues raised were: Lack of clarity about who is responsible for engaging an interpreter The skill of interpreters being engaged

7. Lack of awareness amongst judicial officers and lawyers about how to work with interpreters Unethical and poor professional conduct by interpreters

8. Pressuring women to withdraw their applications Telling women they were bringing shame on their family and community Deliberately misinterpreting what was said Breaching confidentiality by telling others about the proceeding

9. Attending court The intimidating process of arriving to court Safety while waiting at court Difficulty understanding formes, charges, orders or judgments

10. Court room dynamics The impact of attitudes and actions of judicial officers Abuse of court processes by perpetrators The need for judicial officers to receive cultural competency training
The report shows that many women biggest concerns about going to court was the prospect of having tot sit in the same court room as the perpetator and consequently having to give evidence in front of him.
Regarding abuse of court processes many women reported instances of men abusing court processes I order to maintain power and control over women.
Abuse of the process has huge detrimental affects upon women
To retell their story which increases the risk of re traumatisation.
Delay in resolution impacts upon the time it takes fro them to heal and recover.
several migrant and refugee women who had experienced this issue stated that the combination of community isolation and lengthy court proceeding had made the situation particularly difficult to cope with. And for women on temporary visas may face issues with renewing their visas while waiting for resolution of their cases.

11. Unique forms of violence Violence related to immigration status Threats to family overseas Multi-perpetrator family violence Dowry-related family violence Female genital mutilation(FGM), human trafficking and forced marriage

12. Strategies to respond to barriers Building relationship with local settlement service providers, domestic violence providers, legal services and police Undertaking cultural competence training Undertaking family, domestic or sexual violence training and training on trauma-informed practice

13. Taking measures to help women feel safe in the court environment and when giving evidence including allowing participation via video-link where available Being aware when an interpreter may be needed and how to request one Undertaking training on working with interpreters
Let me conclude by adding what a report from the Department of Social services noted that, in common with Australian women many migrant and refugee women face difficulties “finding accommodation, achieving financial independence, undertaking employment, obtaining legal advice and locating childcare”. However, for migrant and refugee women these difficulties are deepen by factors such as not being able to speak English, having o independent rental history, having few to none friends or family members in Australia who can provide support”. Furthermore, many migrant and refugee women have limited access to public husing, income support and wwork rights due to their immigration status’.
Studies, literature and reports demonstrate clearly that one of greatest barriers migrant and refugee women face in accessing justice is a lack of knowledge about Australian Law, the operation of the legal system and how to access legal assistance.

14. Judicial Council on Cultural Diversity JCCD PO Box 1895 Canberra ACT 2602 Phone: Website: