Criminal justice and law | Plathin

Criminal law

Criminal proceedings

We assist both the accused and the plaintiffs in criminal proceedings. Furthermore we assist in the preliminary investigation and function as counsels and defense counsels in criminal proceedings.

We work in all fields of criminal law. We have for instance handled cases of:

Sexual offence
Offence against the person
Property offence
Economic offence
Drug offence
Occupational safety offence
Traffic offence
Environmental offence

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The proceedings of a criminal offence

Most offences are offences subject to public prosecution. The police always investigate these offences upon hearing about them. For instance assault and rape are offences subject to public prosecution, even when they have been committed at home or the offender is a family member.

Complainant offences are offences investigated by the police only if the injured party demands a penalty for the offender. Such offences are for instance cases of petty theft and damage.

1. Report of an offence

If you have been victim of a crime, you should make a report of the offence as soon as possible to the police. You can report the offence to the police patrol that arrives to the scene of the crime or by going to the police station. If the matter is a petty offence, you also contact the police on the Internet or by telephone.

If you have suffered injuries due to the offence, you should see a medical professional as soon as possible. For the purposes of a possible trial or an application for compensation, it is useful to have a medical certificate on your injuries.

2. Preliminary investigation

The police must conduct a preliminary investigation if there is reason to suspect that a crime has been committed. In the preliminary investigation the police finds out what has happened, who the parties are and what are the damages or injuries caused by the offence.

The police summons the parties to an interrogation, if it is needed. In order to solve the crime, also other people, who might know something about the matter, are questioned. In the preliminary investigation, performed by the police, also the victim’s claims are looked into.

When the protocol of preliminary investigation has been completed, the police send it to the prosecutor.

The complainant and the suspect have the right to receive a copy of the protocol free of charge.

3. Consideration of charges

When the prosecutor has received the protocol of preliminary investigation, the prosecutor decides upon whether to press charges, which is to say whether the case be brought to court proceedings or not.

The prosecutor can decide not to press charges e.g. if there is not evidence of an offence, the offence is of a petty nature or the case has been settled. The victim has the right to be informed on the prosecutor’s decision to not press charges. If the victim has already during the preliminary investigation stated that he or she will demand punishment, the victim can press charges, in case the prosecutor decides not to do so.

If the prosecutor assesses that the suspect of the offence should be prosecuted, the prosecutor submits a plaint, and the report related to it, to the district court.

4. Legal proceedings

The parties of the legal proceedings are the prosecutor, the accused and the victim as the complainant. The district court usually calls all the parties and witnesses to the legal proceedings. In the invitation it is stated, whether one has to be personally present at the legal proceedings or not.

The sessions of the court are generally open to the public. The court may hold its hearing either fully or partially without a public, this is to say behind closed doors. This can be requested of the judge. This can be done for instance in sexual offence cases.

Most slight and ordinary offences can be processed in written proceedings. The condition for this is that the defendant has admitted the deed and accepts that the case be processed in written proceedings. Also the victim of the crime must have given his or her consent to the written proceedings.

5. The court decision and its appeal

The district court announces its decision immediately after the session has ended, or alternatively announces when the decision will be given.

The decision of the district court can be appealed in the court of appeal. In certain situations permission for continued hearing is needed in order for the court of appeal to take the case into a full-scale hearing.

If one is dissatisfied with the decision, one must inform the district court about it within one week of the decision. The letter of appeal must be submitted to the district court within 30 days of the court decision.

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We are happy to assist you in matters related to crime law. Our vast knowledge and our long experience help all parties to reach the best possible result.