Our history
The Australian Linguistics ‘Call to Action’
At the end of 2017, a ‘Call to Action’ was initiated by the Australian Linguistic Society (ALS), and endorsed by the Applied Linguistics Association of Australia (ALAA), the Australian Speech Science and Technology Association (ASSTA) and the Australian Institute of Interpreters and Translators (AusIT).
The Call to Action was a letter informing the judiciary that linguists had become aware of serious problems in the legal handling of indistinct forensic audio, and asking them to review and reform the relevant procedures.
The letter was delivered to the Australasian Institute of Judicial Administration (AIJA), from where it made its way to the Council of Chief Justices (CCJ) and was eventually taken up by the Judicial Council on Cultural Diversity (JCCD) – who have an impressive track record of working with linguistics scholars to improve awareness of language and speech issues that affect the fairness of legal procedures.
Communication with the judiciary was taken forward by a working party of committed individuals, led by Helen Fraser, and including Professor Diana Eades, Professor Lesley Stirling, Mr Alex Bowen, The Honourable Peter Gray, Associate Professor (now Professor) Georgina Heydon and Professor Sandra Hale.
At the end of 2019, a working party of four judges from the JCCD held a full-day consultation with the linguists, as well as representatives from police and prosecution agencies around the country. At the end of the consultation, the judges acknowledged the linguists’ concerns, and the need for the issues be further investigated. The University of Melbourne stepped forward to take on the role, and some months later, the Hub was born.
We are glad to live in a democracy where this kind of engagement between law, law enforcement and academia is possible.
Establishment of the Hub
The Research Hub for Language in Forensic Evidence was established in February 2020 as a strategic initiative of the Faculty of Arts and the School of Languages and Linguistics, brokered by Professor Russell Goulbourne and Professor Lesley Stirling.
The Research Hub for Language in Forensic Evidence was officially launched over zoom on Friday, 30 October 2020 by Professor Russell Goulbourne, Dean of the Faculty of Arts at the University of Melbourne. Speeches were presented by The Honourable Chris Kourakis, Chief Justice of South Australia and Chair of the Judicial Commission on Cultural Diversity; Professor Diana Eades, of the University of New England; and Professor Sandra Hale, of the University of New South Wales.
Further developments, and a view to the future
On Monday 24 October 2022, with the pandemic finally starting to ease, another important consultation was convened by Professor Helen Fraser, Research Hub for Language in Forensic Evidence and Professor Marilyn McMahon of Deakin Law School, in collaboration with Melbourne Law School’s Criminal Law Research Forum.
This time an impressive list of eminent judicial officers, legal scholars and linguistics researchers from around Australia and the UK considered problems with forensic audio. At the conclusion of the workshop, participants agreed that:
- Australian courts should not use police transcripts to assist jurors in understanding indistinct audio admitted as evidence in court;
- all indistinct audio admitted as evidence should be accompanied by a demonstrably reliable transcript produced via accountable, evidence-based methods designed and managed by experts in forensic linguistics;
- law reform should be implemented to ensure the above.
During 2023-4, Helen Fraser briefed the Forensic Evidence Working Group, an ad hoc group set up by Supreme Court of Victoria to help improve the handling of forensic evidence in general. A survey was circulated, with enlightening results, and recommendations were made. Further progress is awaited.
At the end of 2023, the Hub was extended for a further five years, and after an extensive interview process, our new research fellows were selected, with Dr Vincent Aubanel starting on 5 February 2024 and Dr Annina Heini on 9 September 2024.