Understanding the International Criminal Court

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74. How can victims find a legal representative?

Victims may freely choose their legal representative as long as the representative has the necessary

qualifications: he or she must possess ten years’ experience as judge, prosecutor or lawyer in criminal

proceedings and fluency in at least one of the working languages of the Court (English or French). The

ICC Registry helps victims to find a legal representative by providing a list of qualified lawyers. At the

Court, there is also an Office of Public Counsel for Victims (OPCV) which can represent victims and

provide them and their legal representative with legal assistance.

If  there  are  a  large  number  of  victims,  the  judges  may  ask  them  to  choose  one  or  more  common

legal  representatives.  This  is  called  common  legal  representation,  and  its  purpose  is  to  ensure  the

effectiveness of the proceedings.