As a victim of a criminal offence, you can join the criminal proceedings against the accused with a joint action.
However, this only applies to certain offences, for example
- Rape and sexual abuse
- Bodily harm
- Hostage-taking or serious deprivation of liberty
- Robbery, if there are serious consequences of the offence or other special reasons.
Relatives of a victim who has been killed can also bring a secondary action.
The public prosecutor's office remains the main plaintiff.
As a co-plaintiff, you have the following rights:
- the right to be present during the entire trial, even if you are to be questioned as a witness
- during the main hearing, for example, the right to challenge a judge or expert witness due to bias, the right to submit motions for evidence or the right to make statements
- the right to request access to the files through your lawyer
- the right to lodge an appeal
Please note: You can exercise these rights independently of the public prosecutor's office.