With the rapid increase of immigration in Italy, ethnic minorities who do not speak Italian are finding it increasingly difficult to make their voice heard. If speaking in and being understood in one's own language is a fundamental prerequisite for civil rights, this situation does not guarantee equal access to statutory services. Furthermore, Italy does not have sufficiently developed infrastructures to provide adequate services for the new immigrants. Some of the specific cross-cultural aspects of communication that are investigated relate to the role of hierarchy in the service-provider/client relationship. Class hierarchies, gender as well as cross-cultural differences in rhetorical forms are touched upon. The paper explores ways in which some aspects of our current theoretical models, paradigms and axioms could be developed to accommodate the "real-world" needs and demands of interpreters and their clients.