The judiciary system in the Netherlands

The judge has a central position under the rule of law.

A well-functioning judiciary that enjoys the confidence of the citizens forms one of the most essential conditions for enabling a state to function under the rule of law. But the authority of the judge is no longer self-evident.

Society is placing more and more demands on the judiciary system with regard to judicial quality, speed, accessibility, integrity and consistency. In order to be able to meet these demands for quality, it became necessary to strengthen the judicial organization.

By 2002, the judiciary system in the Netherlands had therefore been subject to a far-reaching reorganization by law. This move reinforced the constitutional position of the judiciary and further safeguarded the independence of the judge.

At national level the Council for the Judiciary was established, while the courts throughout the country were given the responsibility for running their own organization on the basis of integral management.

The Council for the Judiciary is part of the judiciary system, but does not administer justice itself. It has taken over responsibility for a number of tasks from the Minister of Justice. These tasks are operational in nature and include the allocation of budgets, supervision of financial management, personnel policy, ICT and accommodation.

The Council supports the courts in executing their tasks in these areas. It was also given the task of promoting the quality of the judiciary system and advising on new legislation which has implications for how justice is administered.

The Council also acts as a spokesperson for the judiciary in public and political debate. The introduction of integral management means the courts now stand firmly on their own two feet.

Each court has its own collegial council, chaired by the court president. The council is charged with the general management and day-to-day running of the court. The sector heads serve on the council, as does the director of operations. This ensures unity within the court regarding main issues. Within this framework, the sector heads are also given a measure of freedom in the management of their own sectors.

The courts are accountable to the Council for the Judiciary with regard to how they utilize their resources. The courts are not accountable to the Council for the way in which judicial decisions are arrived at. In its turn, the Council reports to the Minister of Justice for the way in which resources are utilized.

The autonomization of the judiciary system means that the Minister is less directly involved. He now only holds political responsibility for the functioning of the judiciary system as a whole.

The court system

District Courts

The Netherlands is divided into 19 districts, each with its own court. Each court has a number of subdistrict venues. There are 61 of these in total. The district court is made up of a maximum of five sectors. These always include the administrative sector, civil sector, criminal sector and subdistrict sector. Family and juvenile cases are often put into a separate sector, as is sometimes the case with the administration of the law concerning aliens. The court council is free to determine such matters.

Sectors

Subdistrict

It is relatively simple for ordinary citizens to have their case heard in the subdistrict sector. This means that they have the right to argue their own case and do not need a lawyer to represent them in court. In terms of civil law, the subdistrict judge deals with all cases involving rents, hire purchase and employment. He also deals with all conflicts involving an amount under 5,000 euros.

In criminal law, the subdistrict judge only deals with minor offences, not serious offences. Often these are cases in which the police or the public prosecutor has proposed a settlement. If the accused refuses to accept such a proposal, then the case comes before the subdistrict judge. The subdistrict judge usually delivers an oral judgement immediately after the session.

Criminal law

The judges of the criminal law sector deal with all criminal cases which do not come before the subdistrict judge. These cases can be heard in single-judge divisions or in full-bench divisions with three judges. The full-bench division deals with more complex cases and all cases in which the prosecution demands a sentence of more than one year’s imprisonment.

Civil law/family law

The civil sector also handles cases not specifically allocated to the subdistrict judge. Most of these cases are decided by a single judge, but here too there are full-bench divisions with three judges to deal with more complex cases. A number of district courts have a separate sector for family and juvenile cases, when the number of such cases is considerable

Administrative law

With only a handful of exceptions, administrative disputes are heard by the district court; in many cases the hearing by the administrative law sector is preceded by an objection procedure under the auspices of the administrative authorities. It is usual for these cases to be heard by a single-judge division, but here too the district court can decide to appoint three judges to a case which is complex or which involves fundamental issues. If the district court in question has no separate sector to handle cases governed by the law concerning aliens, such cases are dealt with by the administrative law sector or a division thereof. In cases involving civil servants and social security issues, appeal is a matter for a special appeals tribunal, the Central Appeals Tribunal, and in most other cases for the Administrative Jurisdiction Division of the Council of State.

Courts of Appeal

The 19 districts are divided into five areas of Court of Appeal jurisdiction: The Hague and Amsterdam in the west, Arnhem in the east, ‘s Hertogenbosch in the south and Leeuwarden in the north. With regard to criminal and civil law, the justices of the Court of Appeal only deal with cases where an appeal has been lodged against the judgement passed by the district court. The Court of Appeal re-examines the facts of the case and reaches its own conclusions. In most cases it is possible to contest the Court of Appeal’s decision by appealing in cassation to the Supreme Court of the Netherlands. In addition to criminal and civil cases, the Court of Appeal also deals with all appeals against tax assessments, in its capacity as administrative court.

Special tribunals

The Central Appeals Tribunal is a board of appeal which is mainly active in legal areas pertaining to social security and the civil service. In these areas it is the highest judicial authority. The Tribunal is based in Utrecht. The Trade and Industry Appeals Tribunal is a special administrative court which rules on disputes in the area of social-economic administrative law. In addition this appeals tribunal also rules on appeals for specific laws, such as the Competition Act and the Telecommunications Act. The Tribunal is based in The Hague.

The Supreme Court

The Supreme Court of the Netherlands, located in The Hague, examines whether the lower court observed proper application of the law in reaching its decision. At this stage, the facts of the case as established by the lower court are no longer subject to discussion. The appeal in cassation therefore fulfils an important function in promoting unity of law.

The Council for the Judiciary

The Council’s tasks relate to operational matters (in the broadest sense of the term), budgetary matters and the qualitative aspects of the administration of justice. The Council has a pivotal role in terms of preparing, implementing and accounting for the judiciary system’s budget. The budget system is based on a workload-measurement system maintained by the Council. The Council encourages and supervises the development of operational procedures in the day-to-day running of the courts. The specific tasks in question are personnel policy, accommodation, ICT and external affairs. The Council has a range of formal statutory powers, which enable it to carry out these tasks. For instance, the Council is empowered to issue binding general instructions with regard to operational policy, although it prefers to exercise this power as little as possible. The Council is responsible for the recruitment, selection and training of judicial and court officials. It carries out its tasks in these areas in close consultation with the court councils. The Council has a significant say in appointing members to the court council. The Council’s task as it pertains to the quality of the judiciary system involves promoting the uniform application of the law and enhancing judicial quality. In view of the overlap with the content of judicial rulings, the Council has no powers of compulsion in this area. The Council also has a general advisory task. It advises the government about new laws which have implications for the judiciary system. This process takes place in ongoing consultation with the members of the court councils.

Activities

The Council has an office to assist it in its activities and to carry out any preparatory work that may be required. This bureau employs about 120 people. When it was founded, in 2002, the Council formulated a number of policy priorities. Some policy priorities are concerned with activities which mainly take place behind the scenes, such as the extension of personnel management, investment in knowledge management and improvement of management and costing systems. Other activities are more obvious to the general public, such as improving the provision of information with the aid of modern technology, and expanding and upgrading the court buildings and facilities.

Approach

Although the Council has formal powers at its disposal, the relationship between the Council and the courts should not be seen as hierarchical. The Council sets itself the primary goal of supporting the courts in their tasks. In order to ensure that the various tasks are carried out properly, the Council consults regularly with court presidents, directors of operations, sector heads and the Board of Representatives (an advisory body made up of representatives from the courts).