Martha Yiech was seven months' pregnant with her seventh child when a fight occurred at a Delacombe house at 6pm on November 19, 2019.

The Sudanese-born woman pleaded guilty to recklessly causing injury at the Ballarat Magistrates' Court last month and returned to court on Friday for a plea hearing.

Crown prosecutor Jordan O'Toole said Yiech and the victim were at another Sudanese woman's house when Yiech had a telephone conversation with a community leader from Sudan about the women being elders and teaching their children traditions.

One of the women refused the suggestion and an altercation broke out.

"The victim then grabbed the accused and told her she didn't want to associate with the woman concerned. As the victim was pointing at the accused, she got up and slapped the victim," Mr O'Toole said.

"The two women grappled with each other before the accused bit down on the accused's left ear."

Mr O'Toole said a large proportion of the victim's ear was removed and Yiech spat it out and let it drop onto the floor. Yiech had blood around her mouth.

One of the women took the victim to a Ballarat hospital but she was transferred to The Alfred hospital where she was admitted for two days.

Surgeons were unable to reattach the victim's ear due to infection and she had undergone two reconstruction operations.

Mr O'Toole said the victim continued to receive in and out of patient care, she had permanently lost part of her ear and she would not go out in public unless her ear was covered up.

He said the victim was undergoing tests to determine if her hearing loss was permanent.

Defence counsel said it was an extremely unfortunate injury but asked the court to take into account Yiech was a particularly remarkable person who had gone above and beyond to help her family.

The court was told Yiech had been in Australia for 13 years, had no criminal history and it was hard to understand why the incident unfolded the way it did.

The prosecution said the offending warranted imprisonment, while the defence submitted a community corrections order was appropriate. Yiech will be sentenced next month.

She appeared in court for Friday's plea hearing with a supporter and interpreter.

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