Communication assistance

Support available

Communication assistance may be available if:

• you or someone you know has been charged with an offence, or will be giving evidence as a witness, and
• may need help to understand what is happening in court, respond to questions or give evidence.

The communication assistant may:

• work with the lawyers to prepare questions for court that they will be able to understand and answer
• prepare easy to read documents or visual aids to assist their understanding
• check that they can understand what is happening in court and tell the judge if they need a break or other help. 

Anyone who is working with or supporting a defendant or witness during their case can help to identify that they may need communication assistance. Many people who use communication assistance have (or are suspected to have) an intellectual or learning disability, autism or other neurodiversity, brain injury, or under-developed language or communication skills. The service is also available for defendants and witnesses experiencing mental distress, and for children.

If you think a defendant may need communication assistance, you should let their lawyer know.  If a witness may need communication assistance, tell the police officer in charge of the case.  The defence lawyer or police officer in charge will fill in an application form [PDF, 1.4 MB] and give it to the court. 

The communication assistance service is available nationwide in courts where the Evidence Act 2006 applies. 

Making a complaint about communication assistance 

If you are unhappy or concerned about how well communication assistance was delivered or how a Communication Assistant behaved while providing the service, you can make a complaint. 

Complaints are treated respectfully through a fair and transparent process. 

Find out more about how to make a complaint about communication assistance here: Making a complaint about communication assistance [PDF, 195 KB]