Judges and prosecutors from across Montenegro participated in a specialised capacity-building activity on 18–19 September, aimed at improving the justice system’s response to victims of crime.

Organised in cooperation with the Judicial Training Centre, the workshop focused on equipping legal professionals with the skills to apply a victim-centered approach, ensuring sensitivity and consistency in handling cases involving victims. The training covered key topics, including victim protection, handling evidence in sensitive cases, and applying national and international legal frameworks. Participants also explored practical aspects of recent amendments to Montenegro’s criminal legislation through expert-led discussions and hands-on exercises.

The program emphasised understanding the complex realities victims face within the judicial process and the importance of protecting their rights from the first contact with the relevant entities.

This initiative represents an important step toward strengthening the judiciary’s role in safeguarding victims’ rights and ensuring accountability. It is part of broader efforts to build a justice system that is both responsive and accessible to all.

This initiative is supported in the framework of the action “Strengthening accountability of the judicial system and enhancing protection of victims’ rights in Montenegro”,  part of the joint European Union and Council of Europe programme “Horizontal Facility for the Western Balkans and Türkiye” which is enabling the Beneficiaries to meet their reform agendas in the fields of human rights, rule of law and democracy and to comply with European standards.