Publications

Research that informs practice

Research on communication intermediaries, disability rights, vulnerable participants and access to justice.

Selected research

Communication access and effective participation in justice

Dr Rukiya Stein's research examines how communication barriers affect people with disability and other vulnerable participants in police interviews, cross-examination and court proceedings.

This collection brings together peer-reviewed journal articles, book chapters and professional publications on witness and communication intermediaries, accessible questioning and equal participation in the Australian justice system.

Article

Fragmented Justice

An examination of how inconsistent witness intermediary schemes affect communication disability rights across Australia's criminal justice systems.

Rukiya Stein, Laura Smith-Khan and Siva Barathi Marimuthu, "Fragmented Justice: Witness Intermediary Schemes and Communication Disability Rights in the Australian Criminal Justice Process" (2026) Australian Journal of Human Rights 1-26; DOI 10.1080/1323238X.2026.2729482.

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Article

Bridging the Justice Gap

A comparative analysis of unequal access to intermediary assistance for adults with disabilities and child witnesses in New South Wales.

Rukiya Stein and Jane Goodman-Delahunty, "Bridging the Justice Gap: Inequity in Provision of Intermediary Assistance for Adults with Disabilities" (2025) 50(1) Alternative Law Journal 61-65.

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Article

A Communication Intermediary, An Autistic Defendant and Cross-Examination

A case study of intermediary support, accessible questioning and effective participation for an autistic defendant giving evidence.

Rukiya Stein, Jane Goodman-Delahunty and Tania Sourdin, "A Communication Intermediary, An Autistic Defendant and Cross-Examination: A Novel Australian Case" (2026) 33(3) Psychiatry, Psychology and Law 782-806; DOI 10.1080/13218719.2025.2470627.

Open DOI

Book chapter

Navigating the Linguistic Complexity of Cross-Examination

An analysis of complex courtroom language and the witness intermediary's role in supporting an autistic defendant during cross-examination.

Rukiya Stein, "Navigating the Linguistic Complexity of Cross-Examination: The Role of the Witness Intermediary for an Autistic Defendant" in Magdalena Szczyrbak (ed.), More Than (Just) Words: Legal and Non-Legal Narratives in the Courtroom and Beyond (De Gruyter Mouton, 2025) 127-148.

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Book chapter

Interviews with Vulnerable Complainants Such as Those with Disabilities

Guidance and research on interviewing vulnerable adult sexual assault complainants, including people with disabilities.

Ray Bull and Rukiya Stein, "Interviews with Vulnerable Complainants Such as Those with Disabilities" in Forensic Interviewing of Adult Sexual Assault Complainants (Springer Nature Switzerland, 2026) 449-465.

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Article

Vulnerability and the Right to Effective Participation in the Criminal Justice Process

A discussion of vulnerability, participation rights and the role of witness intermediaries in the criminal justice process.

Rukiya Stein, "Vulnerability and the Right to Effective Participation in the Criminal Justice Process: The Role of the Witness Intermediary" (October 2024) 36(9) Judicial Officers' Bulletin, Judicial Commission of NSW, 91.

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Magazine

The Brief — June 2026 Issue

Professional reading and commentary for Australia's family law community.

Read the June 2026 issue of The Brief, published by the Family Law Education Network.

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