Throughout 2023, Eurojust organised a series of meetings on different crime types, in which dedicated sessions were held to examine the issue of victims’ rights from the perspective of a particular crime area.

Trafficking in human beings – The Focus Group of specialised prosecutors against human trafficking in June 2023 highlighted the specific difficulties faced by judicial practitioners in relation to protecting victims’ rights. For example, gathering admissible evidence can be particularly challenging when obtaining testimonies from victims of human trafficking. In some countries, such as Spain, it was noted that the consent of the victims can create further difficulties for prosecutors to prove the exploitation element in court.

Cybercrime – During the 15th Plenary Meeting of the European Judicial Cybercrime Network (EJCN) in November 2023, the Netherlands Public Prosecution Service presented a ransomware case where they faced legal challenges in returning seized crypto assets to victims. Participants were able to discuss the case in depth and debate various solutions. This was followed in December 2023 by a ransomware training session for judicial and law enforcement practitioners organised by the EJCN in cooperation with the Cyclopes Project. The training session focused on how practitioners can provide effective guidance to help victims properly assess the situation prior, during and after an attack.

Migrant smuggling – During the Annual Meeting on Migrant Smuggling in November 2023, a prosecutor and member of Eurojust’s Victims’ Rights Working Group presented the particular challenges posed by the deviating legal status of migrants in judicial proceedings, and the possible ramifications of migrants becoming victims of any type of crime. While in many EU Member States migrants carry the status of witness by legislation, they are also often victims of human rights violations in the course of their journey. Establishing the legal status of migrants as victims, witnesses or suspects is crucial to safeguard their rights in judicial proceedings, including in relation to re-victimisation through subjection to multiple statements and testimonies.

Terrorism – During the Annual Meeting on Counter-Terrorism in November 2023, the role of victims in mass trials was addressed, based on the recent trial of the Paris and Saint-Denis terrorist attacks of November 2015 in France. Given the large-scale nature of this trial, which involved 2 600 civil parties, 330 lawyers and 20 accused, ensuring victims’ rights was particularly challenging.

Ahead of the trial, the victims’ rights to information and protection were addressed by providing civil parties with practical information about the court building and how it functions, as well as the support that would be offered to them throughout the trial. Victim protection needs were met by engaging with the press and law enforcement authorities attending the trial. For example, military personnel and police officers agreed to make heavy weapons less visible to make victims feel more comfortable. Similarly, coloured badges were used to help journalists identify civil parties who agreed to be approached by the press. During the trial, efforts were made to ensure the best possible conditions for the participation of both national and foreign victims. Interpretation and a web radio were available for civil parties, enabling them to follow the whole trial.

The definition of a victim in this trial was a major challenge as the existing legislation showed its limitations when dealing with complex cases involving a high number of injured and deceased persons. The more than 2 600 persons who asked to be recognised as a civil party to the proceedings embraced a wide range of personal situations and damages suffered. In that context, the court found that the definition of a victim, whether a natural or a legal person, should be broad. A second major challenge was to ensure the effective exercise of victims’ procedural rights – including the right to be heard, to call witnesses, to ask questions to the accused, to make submissions and to request damages – while ensuring the smooth and timely running of the hearing. Advance consultation with relevant stakeholders and innovative solutions were key to achieving this objective.

Joint Investigation Teams (JITs) related to any crime – In October 2023, the 19th annual meeting of the JITs Network Secretariat dedicated a workshop to the ‘Procedural rights of victims within the context of JITs’. Practitioners highlighted the importance of distinguishing between the different stages of an investigation and the role of victims in each of them: identification, rescue and protection, trial testimony and finally, compensation. Participants also acknowledged that the best time and means to address victims’ rights depends on the specific crime under investigation in the JIT. The importance of locating assets to compensate victims was also discussed. Participants confirmed that victims’ rights are not addressed consistently enough between JIT parties and discussed how this could be improved. They also agreed to further promote funding opportunities to support JIT activities related to victims. Finally, the meeting participants recommended including a ‘victims clause’ in the JIT model agreement, disseminating information on the challenging aspects of national legislation on victims’ rights and addressing practitioners’ training needs.