ICCL is working, along with our partners in the Victims’ Rights Alliance, to ensure the full implementation of the EU Victims’ Directive in Irish law. This means campaigning to put in place policies and processes for effective access to the rights set out under the Directive.
ICCL Guide to the EU Victims’ Directive
In 2018, we published a guide to the Directive and the Criminal Justice (Victims of Crime) Act 2017 for anyone who will be interacting with victims in the legal system. We launched the guide at a conference with input from Judith Thompson, commissioner for victims and survivors in Northern Ireland, and Margaret Tuite, EU Commission co-ordinator for the rights of the child. A representative from the Seattle-based Courthouse Dogs Foundation spoke about the impact that specially trained court dogs can have in helping particularly vulnerable victims, such as child victims of sexual abuse, to testify in court.
In 2019, we brought service providers, civil servants and legal experts together to evaluate the impact of the Directive two years on. Attendees at evaluated whether measures to improve access to justice have been implemented and whether they are protecting victims. These measures include the use of translators where appropriate, better access to updates about ongoing cases, and special attention for children and other vulnerable witnesses who are victims of crime. Read more about the conference here.
ICCL training on EU Victims’ Directive
To celebrate the Directive becoming law in 2017, we ran a Massive Open Online Course (MOOC), in partnership with the Law Society of Ireland and the Bar of Ireland, offering expert guidance for all practitioners who wwould be implementing the Victims’ Directive.
Modules covered:
- Introduction to the Victims’ Directive.
- The Criminal Justice (Victims of Crime) Act 2017.
- Vulnerable Victims & Testimonial Aids.
- Compensation, Complaints & Best Practice From Abroad.
ICCL and the Victims’ Rights Alliance
ICCL continues to work with our partners in the Victims’ Rights Alliance (VRA) to ensure implementation of best practice for victims’ rights in the courts system. Our focus is now on securing a Victims’ Rights Ombudsman.
We can only keep doing this work with financial support from people like you. Will you support us today?