Victims’ Charter Review

Background

The Victims’ Charter Act 2006 (Victims’ Charter) sets out minimum standards and entitlements that apply to justice and victims’ services agencies when interacting with victims of crime.  

The legislative requirement to conduct a review  

The Victims of Crime Commissioner (the Commissioner) must review the operation of Victims’ Charter and its benefits for victims and report to the Attorney-General by 7 September 2025 (Victims’ Charter Review).¹ 

The Victims’ Charter Review was recommended by the Victorian Law Reform Commission (VLRC) in their report The Role of Victims of Crime in the Criminal Trial Process (2016). The legislation which introduced the requirement for the VOCC to conduct the Victims’ Charter Review requires the review to be ‘comprehensive’ but did not require the Victims’ Charter Review to consider any specific issues. Therefore, these terms of reference set out what the Commissioner will consider as part of the Victims’ Charter Review. 

Terms of reference 

The Commissioner will review the operation of the Victims’ Charter and its benefits for victims by considering:

1. victims’ awareness and understanding of the Victims’ Charter
2. victims’ views on the effectiveness of the Victims’ Charter in upholding their entitlements
3. the effectiveness of the Victims’ Charter in ensuring justice and victim service agencies respect the entitlements of, and obligations owed to, victims, including for diverse victims
4. the effectiveness of reforms made to the Victims’ Charter since the VLRC’s 2016 report, including the extent to which the Victims’ Charter is resulting in cultural change for the benefit of victims
5. whether further reform to the Victims’ Charter for the benefit of victims is necessary, including consideration of:
   1. current Victims’ Charter principles and entitlements
   2. current mechanisms for upholding entitlements or addressing breaches of the Victims’ Charter
   3. the overall structure and language of the Victims’ Charter and whether this meets contemporary expectations  
6. any other matters relevant to the operation of the Victims’ Charter and its benefits for victims, including whether there are issues requiring further inquiry (whether by the Commissioner or another body).  

In conducting the review, the Commissioner will also consider relevant findings from other reviews or inquiries, including findings of the former Commissioner’s first systemic inquiry: Silenced and Sidelined: Systemic Inquiry into Victim Participation.²