Accessing Rights and Mitigating Revictimization: The Role of the Victim’s Legal Counsel in the Swedish Criminal Justice System

Abstract

Rape victims often face secondary victimization by the criminal justice system, prompting their advocates to promote a variety of procedural changes, including the provision of an independent legal counsel for victims. Sweden implemented a legal counsel for victims of sexual assault and rape in the late 1980s, yet research about their role remains limited. This article draws upon interviews with victim-lawyers in Sweden and suggests that having access to an independent legal counsel can mitigate the risks for secondary victimization by empowering victims to access their rights and providing emotional support and connectedness in the criminal justice system.

Reinvestigating the Sexual Violence “Justice Gap” in the Swedish Criminal Justice System: Victim-Centered Alternatives to the Criminal Trial

“…In addition to helping them access their participatory rights, a victim’s legal counsel also provides logistical and emotional support (Carroll, 2022; Kilander, 2016). Jasmeen, a lawyer who worked as a victim’s legal counsel, described her role as the victim’s lawyer in contrast to the role of the prosecutor:The guilty part, that’s the åklagare’s [prosecutor’s] deal, not the målsägandebiträde .…”

“…Victim-survivors of sexual violence in Sweden have had the right to be appointed their own legal counsel, paid for by the state, since 1988 (Kilander, 2016). Having an independent legal counsel can facilitate a victim-survivor's access to their participatory rights in the investigation and trial process (Carroll, 2022). In Sweden, victims-particularly those who have been victimized by sexual crimes-have extensive participatory rights in the criminal justice system that are not available in other countries (Antonsdóttir, 2018).…”

The ‘lottery’ of rape reporting: Secondary victimization and Swedish criminal justice professionals

“…Although the police are an important first point of contact and how they interact with victim-survivor has important ramifications, more long-term support comes through the victim's own legal counsel, the målsägandebiträde (Carroll, 2021). As noted previously, all victim-survivors of sexual violence in Sweden have had the right to their own legal counsel since 1988, and they have become an increasingly important and recognized part of the criminal justice process (Kilander, 2016).…”

“…There was a similar inconsistency noted for the lawyers working as a victim's legal counsel. While victim-lawyers often play an important role in the victim's satisfaction with the criminal justice process (N. Carlsson et al, 2010;Carroll, 2021), it is not always the case that a victim-survivor is given a lawyer who is well-versed in the dynamics of sexual assault and is prepared to offer the logistical and emotional support a victim-survivor might need. In the local courts, any lawyer can put their name on the list to be called upon as a målsägandebiträde for a rape investigation.…”

“…Olivia compared the lack of specific or extra education for a victim's legal counsel to someone working as a prosecutor, which does require a more specific set of skills and education beyond the law degree. Either through their inability or unwillingness to do the emotional labour required to provide 'curative support', clients of uninvested lawyers are left without an important resource and are at greater risk for dissatisfaction with the criminal justice process and for secondary victimization (see N. Carlsson et al, 2010;Carroll, 2021). At the same time, however, providing emotional support can take a psychological toll on the individual who must do this labour within a professional context.…”