BiH: Harmonized legal practices would benefit all victims

Compensation claims have come a long way in recent years. However, noticeable discrepancies remain throughout BiH, resulting in unequal treatment of victims’ demands.

There is currently no established practice regarding the amount of compensation granted to wartime victims in criminal and civil proceedings. Nor do established criteria exist for determining adequate awards for the harm suffered.

This lack of guidance has resulted in an unequal judicial treatment of victims’ compensation claims throughout the country. “Victims need to know in advance what they can expect when claiming compensation. The judicial response to their specific harm endured needs to be streamlined” says Adrijana Hanusic Becirovic, Senior Legal Adviser at TRIAL International.

To incite harmonization of judicial decision-making, TRIAL International has published a guide to legal practitioners. The publication compiles practices in civil and criminal proceedings on the amount of compensation awarded and criteria used to define them.

Aimed at judicial staff and lawyers representing victims, the guide (available only in Bosnian) should help spread best practices and precedents.

“We hope that this compilation of judicial practice will help practitioners and judicial staff to provide a harmonized and adequate response to victims’ compensation claims.” concludes Adrijana Hanusic Becirovic.