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The role of the Commissioner

Find out more about the Commissioner's work


"If you’ve had an experience with the police or a prosecution or victims’ service that was disrespectful or unhelpful, you can contact my office to let me know about it."

Fiona McCormack
Victims of Crime Commissioner

The Commissioner’s role is to promote issues that regularly affect victims of crime in the justice system and advocate to government on ways in which the justice and victim support systems can be improved for victims’ benefit.   In order to do this, the Commissioner listens to, and learns, from a diverse range of victims about their experiences of the justice system and of seeking support. This enables the commissioner to gather information about gaps in the justice system and ways it can be improved to better service and support victims of crime. The Commissioner also investigates complaints about the way victims have been treated by Victoria Police, prosecutions or victims’ services. They can also conduct inquiries into aspects of the system that negatively affect victims of crime and provide recommendations to government on how things can be improved.

The Commissioner is also responsible for monitoring and reporting on the extent to which Victoria Police, prosecuting agencies and victims’ services are interacting with people who are victims of crime, in line with their obligations under the Victims Charter Act.

It’s important to know that there are some things Victims of Crime Commissioner cannot help with. For example, the Commissioner doesn't have the power to advocate on behalf of an individual victim, change or influence a decision by the prosecution or a court, and cannot provide you with legal advice.

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