A victim advocate (slachtofferadvocaat) is a lawyer who acts for the victim in Dutch criminal proceedings, not for the suspect and not for the Public Prosecution Service. The work covers the exercise of the statutory rights of victims in the Code of Criminal Procedure: access to information and to the case file, assistance when reporting the offence and during interviews, the claim for compensation as an injured party, the right to speak at the hearing, and protective measures. For victims of a violent or sexual offence who meet the statutory conditions, this assistance is provided free of charge and without any income test.
What a victim advocate does
The Dutch criminal process has three separate positions in it. The public prosecutor acts in the public interest and decides whether and what to charge; the defence lawyer acts for the suspect; and the victim, since a series of reforms over the past two decades, has a position of their own with statutory rights attached to it. A victim advocate is the lawyer who exercises those rights. That is a narrower and more concrete role than the English term advocate suggests: it is legal representation, not counselling or support work, and it sits alongside the practical and emotional help that Slachtofferhulp Nederland provides.
In practice the work falls into four parts. The first is information: making sure the victim is told what is happening, obtaining a copy of the case file and following the decisions the prosecutor takes. The second is the claim: quantifying the loss, documenting it and submitting it in the criminal proceedings. The third is participation: preparing the victim statement and, where the victim wishes, attending the hearing with them. The fourth is protection: asking for contact prohibitions and other measures where safety is at issue.
The lawyer is also there at the point where most people first come into contact with the system. There is no rule that an offence must be reported before a lawyer can be instructed, and a victim can take legal advice about whether and how to report before going to the police. Our guide on filing a police report in the Netherlands sets out how that process works.
When legal assistance is free
The Wet op de rechtsbijstand provides free legal assistance, without a means test and without a personal contribution, to victims of a violent or sexual offence and to the surviving relatives of someone who died as a result of such an offence. Three conditions have to be met in practice: the offence must be a violent or sexual offence, the suspect must be known to the authorities, and the victim must fall within the group that qualifies for a payment under the Wet schadefonds geweldsmisdrijven, which turns on the seriousness of the physical or psychological injury.
Those conditions do real work. Serious injury in this context is assessed against the guidelines the Schadefonds applies, which look at matters such as lasting consequences, permanent visible injury or an inability to carry out normal activities for a prolonged period; for sexual offences and armed robbery, serious injury is generally assumed. Where the conditions are not met, the ordinary system applies: subsidised legal aid through the Raad voor Rechtsbijstand for those whose income and assets fall below the statutory thresholds, with a personal contribution that depends on income and is set annually, or legal expenses insurance, or paying privately. Which route applies is worth clarifying at the first contact rather than later.
The rights the law gives victims
Title IIIA of Book 1 of the Wetboek van Strafvordering sets out the position of the victim. The police and the Public Prosecution Service must treat the victim correctly and must provide information about the progress of the case, including the decision whether to prosecute, the date of the hearing and the outcome. The victim is entitled to be assisted by a lawyer and may also be accompanied by a person of their own choosing. Where the victim does not speak Dutch, an interpreter must be provided, and key documents must be translated.
The victim also has the right to add documents to the file and to inspect it. Access is granted by the prosecutor and can be restricted where the investigation requires it, which is why requests are usually made through a lawyer and repeated as the file develops. A further right that is easy to overlook is the individual assessment: the police assess whether a victim needs specific protection measures, such as avoiding contact with the suspect at the court building or being interviewed by the same officer throughout.
The Wet uitbreiding slachtofferrechten, published in 2021 and brought into force in stages, strengthened this position further. It extended the right to speak to a wider circle of relatives and introduced an obligation for suspects held in custody in serious violent and sexual cases to attend the hearing, so that the victim who speaks is not addressing an empty chair.
Claiming compensation in the criminal case
A victim who has suffered loss as a direct result of the offence can join the criminal proceedings as an injured party (benadeelde partij) and claim damages from the suspect there, instead of starting separate civil proceedings. The claim covers material loss, such as medical costs, damaged property and loss of income, and non-material loss for the harm suffered. It must be quantified and supported by documents, which is why invoices, medical records and correspondence with insurers matter from the beginning.
There is a limit built into the procedure. The criminal court will only deal with a claim that does not place a disproportionate burden on the criminal proceedings. A claim that requires extensive evidence, expert reports or a contested calculation of future loss can be declared inadmissible in whole or in part, in which case the victim keeps the right to bring it before the civil court. A well-prepared and properly documented claim is therefore not only more likely to succeed; it is more likely to be dealt with at all.
Where the court awards the claim, it will usually also impose a compensation measure (schadevergoedingsmaatregel) alongside it. That changes who does the collecting: the State, through the CJIB, collects the amount from the convicted person, so the victim does not have to pursue the offender. It also opens the advance payment scheme. If the convicted person has not paid within eight months of the judgment becoming irrevocable, the State pays out the outstanding amount to the victim. For victims of violent and sexual offences the advance is not capped; for other offences it is limited to a maximum fixed by order in council. The State then continues to collect from the offender at its own risk.
If the criminal route does not produce a result
An acquittal does not close off compensation. The criminal court applies a stricter standard of proof than the civil court, and a claim that fails because the charge could not be proved beyond reasonable doubt may still succeed in civil proceedings, where liability is assessed on the ordinary civil standard. The claim is then based on unlawful act (onrechtmatige daad) under the Civil Code. We deal with that route separately in our guide to victims rights in Dutch civil law after a criminal case.
There is also a route that does not depend on the offender at all. The Schadefonds Geweldsmisdrijven (Violent Offences Compensation Fund) makes a payment to victims of an intentional violent offence or a sexual offence who have suffered physical or psychological consequences, and to surviving relatives. The fund does not require a conviction and does not require the offender to be known, which is what makes it valuable where the case is never solved or the offender cannot pay. The application must reach the fund within ten years of the offence, although a later application can still be considered where there is a good reason for the delay. The payment is a fixed contribution from a schedule rather than full compensation, and amounts already received from the offender or from insurance are deducted. Details are on www.schadefonds.nl.
The right to speak at the hearing
Victims and certain relatives have the right to speak at the hearing in cases involving the more serious offences. The scope of what may be said is not restricted to the consequences of the offence: since the law was amended, a victim may also express a view on the evidence and on the sentence. The statement can be delivered in person, read out by the lawyer or by another person, or submitted in writing.
Exercising the right is a choice, not a duty, and it is worth making that choice deliberately. Speaking has value for many people and it gives the court information it would not otherwise have. It also means appearing in a public courtroom in the presence of the suspect and, in serious cases, of the press. A lawyer can arrange practical protections, such as a separate waiting room, and can advise on what is useful to include and what is better left out because it may invite questions from the defence. Our article on the criminal court hearing in the Netherlands describes how the day itself is structured.
If the Public Prosecution Service decides not to prosecute
The prosecutor decides whether to bring a case, and that decision can go against the victim. Where the Public Prosecution Service dismisses a case or decides not to prosecute, a directly interested party can lodge a complaint with the court of appeal. The court of appeal examines whether prosecution should nevertheless take place and can order the Public Prosecution Service to prosecute. The procedure is open without a lawyer, but the complaint has to explain why prosecution is required, and it can be declared inadmissible if it is lodged too late or if the offence has become time-barred, so it is not a step to leave lying.
Protection and contact prohibitions
Where safety is the immediate concern, several instruments run in parallel and they are not all criminal. The public prosecutor can impose a behavioural direction on a suspect during the investigation, including a contact or area prohibition. A court can attach a contact prohibition as a special condition to a suspended sentence or to conditional release, and can impose one as a separate measure. Independently of the criminal case, a civil court can grant an injunction with a penalty payment in urgent proceedings, which is often the fastest route where there is no criminal file yet. In a domestic setting, the mayor can impose a temporary domestic exclusion order on the person posing the threat, initially for a short fixed period that can be extended.
Which instrument fits depends on what has happened and on what evidence exists. Where the conduct consists of persistent following, contact and intimidation rather than a single incident, the offence of stalking is in play and both criminal and civil routes are available; we set that out in our article on stalking and the legal steps available.
Sexual offences: what changed on 1 July 2024
The Wet seksuele misdrijven entered into force on 1 July 2024 and rewrote this part of the Criminal Code. The new offences are built around consent rather than around proof of force or coercion, and the law now also covers conduct in which the perpetrator should have known that consent was absent. It introduced offences for sexual harassment in public and online and modernised the provisions on sexual conduct involving children. Which version applies depends on when the conduct took place, so cases that straddle the date are assessed under both, and that is a question for the file rather than for a general rule. Our article on a sexual offence case in the Netherlands deals with the procedure in more detail.
Limitation is a separate issue that often decides whether anything can be done at all. Serious offences carrying the heaviest maximum sentences are not subject to limitation, and for sexual offences committed against a minor the limitation period does not begin to run until the victim reaches the age of eighteen. Where an offence is historic, the first question a lawyer asks is therefore not whether it can be proved but whether it can still be prosecuted.
Common misunderstandings
The first is that the prosecutor is the victim lawyer. The Public Prosecution Service acts in the public interest and will not always take the same view of the case as the victim; it decides on the charge, on the evidence to be adduced and on the sentence it demands, and it is not obliged to press a compensation claim. Only a lawyer instructed by the victim acts exclusively for the victim.
The second is that nothing can be done before a report is made. Legal advice before reporting is often the most useful moment of all, because it is when decisions are made about what to secure, what to record and whether to report at all.
The third is that the compensation claim can be dealt with informally at the hearing. It cannot. It has to be submitted on the prescribed form, in good time, quantified and supported by evidence, and a claim that arrives late or unsupported is the one that gets declared inadmissible.
The fourth is that free legal assistance covers everything. It covers the criminal proceedings and the position of the victim within them. Follow-on civil proceedings, employment consequences or an application to the Schadefonds may fall under a different arrangement, which is worth checking at the outset.
Where to get support
- Slachtofferhulp Nederland provides free practical, emotional and legal support to victims and relatives, on 0900-0101.
- Schadefonds Geweldsmisdrijven makes payments to victims of intentional violent and sexual offences, independently of any criminal case.
- The police and the Public Prosecution Service are obliged to inform you about the progress of the case and about your rights, including the possibility of legal assistance.
- A victim advocate exercises your rights within the criminal proceedings and prepares and submits the compensation claim.
Frequently asked questions about victim advocates
What does a victim advocate do?
A victim advocate is a specialised legal professional who assists victims of serious violent and sexual offences during criminal proceedings, helping represent them, claim compensation through the criminal court, advise on protective measures, and assist with reporting and police interviews.
Do victims of serious violent or sexual offences have to pay for this legal assistance themselves?
No, provided the statutory conditions are met: the offence is a violent or sexual offence, the suspect is known to the authorities, and the injury is serious enough to fall within the group covered by the Wet schadefonds geweldsmisdrijven. There is then no income test and no personal contribution.
Can a victim challenge a decision by the public Prosecution Service?
Yes, if a victim disagrees with a decision such as the dismissal of a case, the court of appeal can hear a complaint about this.
Can a victim claim compensation as part of the criminal case itself?
Yes, a victim advocate can pursue compensation through the criminal court via joinder proceedings, in addition to any separate civil proceedings for further claims.
How Law & More can help
Our criminal lawyers act for victims and for surviving relatives in criminal proceedings. We advise before a report is made, obtain and review the case file, prepare and submit the claim as an injured party, prepare the victim statement and attend the hearing, request protective measures where safety is at issue, and lodge a complaint with the court of appeal where the Public Prosecution Service decides not to prosecute. Where the conditions for free legal assistance are met, that assistance costs you nothing; where they are not, we tell you at the first meeting which arrangement applies. You can read more in our criminal law guides or contact us to discuss your situation.
