Criminal law
Defending yourself as a defendant, asserting your rights as a victim
In Switzerland, the Criminal Code (StGB/CP) defines offences and penalties, while the Code of Criminal Procedure (StPO/CPC) governs investigations, hearings and remedies. Victims of offences further benefit from the special protection of the Federal Act on Assistance to Victims of Offences (OHG/LAVI), which gives them access to free legal, social and psychological support.
In the canton of Geneva, public prosecution is conducted by the Public Prosecutor's Office, under the authority of the Attorney General. Criminal cases are tried at first instance by the Police Court (sentences up to 2 years), the Correctional Court (sentences up to 10 years) or the Criminal Court (sentences exceeding 10 years). Judgments may be challenged on appeal before the Criminal Appeal and Review Division (CPAR) of the Court of Justice and, in the last instance, before the Federal Supreme Court.
Because deadlines are mandatory and the stakes can be heavy (custodial sentence, criminal record, expulsion, compensation), it is recommended to consult a lawyer without delay, ideally before any hearing.
Table of contents
Last update : 27.04.2026
Filing a complaint
Complaint, denunciation, private claimant
When you have been the victim or witness of an offence, two avenues are open to you: a criminal complaint, which is required for offences "prosecuted only upon complaint", and a denunciation, which applies to offences prosecuted ex officio. This distinction governs both the need to act and the deadline within which to do so.
Complaint or denunciation?
- Criminal complaint: required for offences whose prosecution depends on the injured party filing a complaint (e.g. insult [art. 177 StGB/CP], simple bodily harm [art. 123 no. 1 StGB/CP], damage to property [art. 144 para. 1 StGB/CP], theft between relatives [art. 137 no. 1 in conjunction with art. 139 no. 4 StGB/CP]). No complaint, no prosecution.
- Denunciation: a report to the authorities of an offence prosecuted ex officio (e.g. grievous bodily harm, robbery, sexual coercion, rape, fraud). Anyone, whether or not the injured party, may file a denunciation. The authority must then investigate, regardless of the wishes of the injured party.
Deadline: 3 months (art. 31 StGB/CP)
The right to file a complaint lapses after 3 months from the day on which the entitled person learned the identity of the offender. This deadline is one of forfeiture: a late complaint is inadmissible, and the authority must then close the case if the offence is prosecuted only upon complaint. If the offender is unknown, the deadline does not run, but the criminal limitation period (art. 97 StGB/CP) does run.
Where and how to file a complaint
The complaint or denunciation may be filed:
- At a police station. A statement is recorded.
- With the Public Prosecutor's Office, by signed letter setting out the facts and accompanied by relevant exhibits (art. 301 StPO/CPC).
A complaint has no prescribed form, but it must clearly identify the facts, the offender (if known; otherwise the complaint may be filed against an unknown person), the date and place, and express the intention to prosecute. Filing a complaint already constitutes registration as a private claimant within the meaning of art. 118 para. 2 StPO/CPC: you become a party to the proceedings and benefit from the rights attached to that status (see chapter Defending as a victim).
Withdrawal of the complaint (art. 33 StGB/CP)
As long as the cantonal second-instance judgment has not been pronounced, the entitled person may withdraw the complaint. The withdrawal is final: the complaint cannot be re-filed (art. 33 para. 2 StGB/CP). With several defendants, withdrawal benefits all of them, except those who object to it.
Hesitating to file a complaint? The 3-month deadline is short: it is best to have your prospects assessed promptly, before it is too late. You can book an appointment by phone or book online .
Filing a complaint with the police or the Public Prosecutor is free. If the proceedings result in a conviction, the costs are in principle borne by the convicted person (art. 426 StPO/CPC). In case of dismissal or acquittal, costs are as a rule borne by the State, and the defendant may claim compensation for legal fees and moral damages (art. 429 StPO/CPC). The private claimant may be ordered to pay the costs and party costs if proceedings are dismissed and he or she acted recklessly or with gross negligence.
Lawyer's fees are in principle not covered by the State for the private claimant. However, if you have victim status under the Victim Support Act, the Victim Support Centre may cover some or all of the legal fees as part of longer-term assistance. Free legal aid may also be sought from the Civil Court for persons without resources (art. 117 ff. CPC, by reference of art. 136 StPO/CPC).
The Public Prosecutor opens an investigation if there are sufficient grounds for suspicion (art. 309 StPO/CPC). At the close of the investigation, three outcomes are possible:
Yes. For minors, the complaint is filed by the legal representative (usually the parents jointly, where parental authority is held jointly). The 3-month deadline (art. 31 StGB/CP) runs from the moment the legal representative learns the identity of the offender. For offences against the sexual integrity of minors, more protective rules apply (in particular, criminal action is imprescriptible for serious offences committed against a child under 12, art. 101 StGB/CP).
What does it cost to file a complaint?
What happens after a complaint has been filed?
Can I file a complaint on behalf of my child?
Defending as a defendant
Hearings, right to silence, court-appointed counsel
Receiving a summons from the police or the Public Prosecutor is unsettling. Whatever the circumstances, keep in mind two fundamental rights: you have the right to remain silent and the right to a lawyer, from the very first hearing. Any hearing conducted without giving you this information is not admissible in the rest of the proceedings.
Summons: police or Public Prosecutor?
You may be summoned:
- By the police (police hearing) — typically in the early days following the events, as part of preliminary investigations (art. 306 StPO/CPC).
- By the Public Prosecutor (prosecutor's hearing) — within the formal investigation (art. 311 StPO/CPC) or in case of a coercive measure (remand custody, search, seizure).
Your status determines the scope of your rights:
- Person required to provide information (art. 178 StPO/CPC): for instance a direct witness or a suspect not yet formally charged. Some defendant's rights (right to refuse to make statements) extend to such persons if they could be incriminated.
- Defendant (art. 111 StPO/CPC): a person formally charged by a complaint, denunciation or procedural act. You enjoy all defence rights.
- Witness (art. 162 StPO/CPC): required to testify (subject to the right of refusal for relatives or professional secrecy), under oath.
Your rights from the first hearing (art. 158 StPO/CPC)
At the start of the first hearing, the police or the Public Prosecutor must inform you, in a language you understand:
- that preliminary proceedings have been opened against you and for which offences (lit. a);
- that you may refuse to make statements and to cooperate (lit. b) — this is the right to silence;
- that you have the right to a defence lawyer or to request court-appointed counsel (lit. c);
- that you may request the assistance of a translator or interpreter (lit. d).
Sanction: hearings conducted without these notices are not admissible (art. 158 para. 2 StPO/CPC). This inadmissibility is absolute: statements made in such circumstances cannot be added to the file, even indirectly.
Mandatory defence (art. 130 StPO/CPC)
The presence of defence counsel is mandatory in several cases, in particular:
- remand custody (including provisional arrest) has exceeded 10 days;
- you are liable to a custodial sentence of more than one year, a custodial measure or an expulsion;
- you cannot adequately defend your interests due to your physical or mental condition or for other reasons, and your legal representatives are unable to do so;
- the Public Prosecutor personally appears before the first-instance court or the appellate court;
- summary proceedings (art. 358 to 362 StPO/CPC) are conducted.
Court-appointed counsel (art. 132 StPO/CPC)
The director of proceedings orders court-appointed counsel:
- in case of mandatory defence, where you do not appoint private counsel or where private counsel withdraws and no new lawyer is designated within the deadline;
- in case of indigence, where you lack the necessary means and the assistance of counsel is justified to safeguard your interests.
The Act provides that a case is not minor (and that counsel is therefore in principle justified) as soon as you are liable to a custodial sentence of more than 4 months or a monetary penalty of more than 120 daily penalty units (art. 132 para. 3 StPO/CPC). You may generally choose your court-appointed lawyer; failing that, the authority designates one from the list of bar members.
Have you been summoned to a hearing? Before answering any question, have a lawyer accompany you. You can book an appointment by phone or book online .
The police may carry out an apprehension (art. 215 StPO/CPC) to identify a person, verify the connection with an offence or prevent a criminal act. Apprehension is in principle limited to 3 hours. Beyond that, a more formal measure (provisional arrest) must be ordered, and the person must be brought before the Public Prosecutor within 24 hours at the latest, who decides whether to order remand custody (art. 219 StPO/CPC).
Yes. The defendant (and the private claimant) have the right to consult the file from the first hearing (art. 101 StPO/CPC) and at the latest after the first hearing of the defendant and the taking of the principal evidence. The Public Prosecutor may, exceptionally and on specific grounds (e.g. risk of collusion, witness protection), temporarily restrict this access (art. 108 StPO/CPC). In practice, access to the file is essential for an effective defence.
Statements made to the police are in principle admissible, provided that the notices under art. 158 StPO/CPC have been given. However, in case of contradiction between an early police statement and a subsequent statement before the Public Prosecutor or the court, the judge will freely assess the probative value of both versions, taking into account the circumstances (length of hearing, condition of the person, presence of a lawyer, etc.). A statement made on the spur of the moment, without counsel, nevertheless retains significant weight. This is precisely why being well advised from the very first hearing matters.
Can the police hold me against my will?
Can I consult my file?
What weight does a statement to the police carry compared to a statement to the Public Prosecutor?
Contesting a conviction
Objection, appeal, appeal to the Federal Supreme Court
In Swiss criminal procedure, two main remedies are open against a conviction, depending on the authority that pronounced it: an objection against a summary penal order issued by the Public Prosecutor (10 days) and an appeal against a court judgment (announcement within 10 days + reasoned declaration within 20 days of notification of the reasoned judgment). At the last instance, an appeal in criminal matters may be filed with the Federal Supreme Court (30 days).
Objection to a summary penal order (art. 354 StPO/CPC)
A summary penal order issued by the Public Prosecutor may be challenged by a written objection within 10 days of notification, before the Public Prosecutor who issued it. The defendant's objection does not need to be reasoned; by contrast, an objection by the private claimant or by other concerned persons must be reasoned (art. 354 para. 2 StPO/CPC). Without a valid objection within the deadline, the summary penal order is treated as a final judgment (art. 354 para. 3 StPO/CPC).
If an objection is filed, the Public Prosecutor may either take new evidence and rule again (new order, dismissal), or refer the file to the first-instance court (art. 355 StPO/CPC) for trial on the merits. For details on this procedure, see the chapter Contesting a summary penal order on the road traffic page, which contains a dedicated schematic.
Appeal against a first-instance judgment (art. 399 StPO/CPC)
An appeal against a first-instance judgment is filed in two steps:
- Announcement of appeal: within 10 days of the communication of the judgment (oral or by operative part), in writing or orally for entry in the record, before the first-instance court (art. 399 para. 1 StPO/CPC).
- Reasoned declaration of appeal: within 20 days of notification of the reasoned judgment, addressed to the appellate court (in Geneva, the Criminal Appeal and Review Division) (art. 399 para. 3 StPO/CPC). The declaration specifies the parts of the judgment under appeal (guilt, sentence, measures, civil claims, costs), the modifications sought and the requests for evidence.
The appellate court has full power of review on the facts and the law (art. 398 StPO/CPC), except for contraventions, where the review is limited. It may issue a new judgment, with a sentence either more severe or more lenient. The rule prohibiting reformatio in pejus (art. 391 para. 2 StPO/CPC) nonetheless protects the defendant when he or she is the sole appellant (without an appeal by the Public Prosecutor): in that case, the sentence cannot be increased.
Appeal in criminal matters before the Federal Supreme Court (art. 78 ff. BGG/LTF)
The cantonal appellate decision may be challenged by an appeal in criminal matters before the Federal Supreme Court, within 30 days of notification of the full decision (art. 100 para. 1 BGG/LTF). The Federal Supreme Court generally reviews only the violation of federal law and findings of fact that are manifestly inaccurate: it is not a third-instance appellate court. The grounds of appeal must be set out with precision.
Have you received a summary penal order or a judgment? The deadline to object (10 days) or to announce an appeal (10 days) is very short: act without delay. You can book an appointment by phone or book online .
The schematic below illustrates, in a simplified way, the typical course of a criminal case, from the opening of the investigation to the last instance.
Simplified schematic: deadlines run from the notification of the relevant decision. All deadlines are mandatory.
No for the defendant: the law does not require any reasoning for the defendant's objection (art. 354 para. 2 StPO/CPC, a contrario). A simple letter stating "I object to the summary penal order of [date], reference [no.]", signed and dated, is enough. Yes for the private claimant and other concerned persons: their objection must be reasoned. In practice, even for the defendant, brief reasoning is often useful, since it guides the further proceedings (proposed dismissal, additional investigation, direct referral to the court).
Court costs are in principle borne by the unsuccessful party (art. 428 StPO/CPC). In case of full acquittal or favourable reformation, costs are borne by the State, and the defendant may claim compensation for legal fees and moral damages suffered (art. 436 StPO/CPC). In Geneva, appellate court fees before the CPAR vary with complexity but can exceed CHF 2,000. A preliminary consultation makes it possible to assess whether the appeal is financially appropriate.
In principle no: once the 10-day deadline has expired, the summary penal order acquires res judicata force. Two narrow exceptions exist:
These avenues are tightly framed and require a thorough analysis: prompt consultation is essential as soon as the issue becomes apparent.
Schematic of the criminal procedure (from filing a complaint to the Federal Supreme Court)
(art. 308 ff. StPO/CPC)
(depending on the penalty incurred)
Court of Justice of the Canton of Geneva
Does an objection to a summary penal order need to be reasoned?
What are the costs of an appeal?
Can I revoke a summary penal order after the objection deadline?
Defending as a victim (Victim Support Act)
Private claimant, civil claims, compensation
The Federal Act on Assistance to Victims of Offences (OHG/LAVI) guarantees victims of direct impairments to their physical, psychological or sexual integrity specific support: free legal, social and psychological assistance through Victim Support Centres, enhanced procedural rights, compensation and moral damages payable by the canton. This protection is in addition to the ordinary rights of the private claimant in criminal proceedings.
Who is a victim within the meaning of the Victim Support Act?
A victim is any person who has suffered, as a result of an offence, a direct impairment to his or her physical, psychological or sexual integrity (art. 1 para. 1 OHG/LAVI). Certain relatives are also protected: spouse, registered partner, children, parents, siblings (art. 1 para. 2 OHG/LAVI). A purely financial loss (e.g. simple theft without violence, fraud, embezzlement) does not, as a rule, give rise to victim status.
Typical examples of victims under the Act: bodily harm, assault, robbery, sexual coercion, rape, coercion, domestic violence, sexual harassment or homicide of a relative.
Victim support: free and confidential
The Act provides three forms of assistance:
- Immediate aid (art. 13 OHG/LAVI): advice, emergency accommodation, first-line psychological support, regardless of income.
- Longer-term aid (art. 13 OHG/LAVI): coverage of medical, legal and psychological costs, subject to income conditions, until the victim has overcome the consequences of the offence.
- Compensation and moral damages (art. 19 ff. OHG/LAVI): financial benefits payable by the canton (max. CHF 120,000 for compensation, max. CHF 70,000 for moral damages), subsidiary to other benefits (insurance, civil damages).
In Geneva, services under the Act are provided by the Geneva Victim Support Centre (boulevard Saint-Georges 72, 1205 Geneva) for consultation and longer-term aid, and by the LAVI Authority of the cantonal Department of Social Cohesion for compensation and moral damages.
Deadline for compensation and moral damages claims (art. 25 OHG/LAVI)
Compensation or moral damages claims must be filed within 5 years from the commission of, or knowledge of, the offence. Otherwise, claims are forfeited (art. 25 para. 1 OHG/LAVI). For serious sexual offences committed against children under 16, the victim may file a claim until his or her 25th birthday (art. 25 para. 2 OHG/LAVI).
Registering as a private claimant (art. 118 StPO/CPC)
The injured party (whether or not a victim under the Act) who wishes to participate actively in the criminal proceedings must register as a private claimant: he or she expressly declares an intention to participate as a claimant in the criminal and/or civil aspects of the case. The mere filing of a complaint already amounts to such a declaration (art. 118 para. 2 StPO/CPC). The declaration must in any event be made before the close of the preliminary proceedings (art. 118 para. 3 StPO/CPC).
The status of private claimant grants, in particular, the following rights:
- Access to the file (art. 101 StPO/CPC) and participation in the principal investigative acts;
- Requests for evidence and the right to put questions to persons heard;
- Appeal against a dismissal order (art. 322 para. 2 StPO/CPC);
- Civil claims directly within the criminal trial (art. 122 ff. StPO/CPC): damages (medical costs, loss of earnings, etc.) and moral damages. This avoids separate civil proceedings and allows reparation to be obtained more quickly.
Specific rights of the victim under the Act in criminal proceedings
In addition to the ordinary rights of the private claimant, victims under the Act benefit from special protections (art. 34 ff. OHG/LAVI and art. 152 ff. StPO/CPC):
- right to be accompanied by a person of trust at hearings;
- right to protection of privacy (closed-door hearings, possible anonymisation);
- in case of offences against sexual integrity, the right, as a rule, to be heard by a person of the same sex (art. 153 StPO/CPC) and to refuse direct confrontation with the alleged offender (art. 152 para. 3 StPO/CPC);
- for child victims, special hearing rules (limitation on the number of hearings, video recording, art. 154 StPO/CPC).
Are you the victim of an offence? Before taking any step, you may consult, free of charge, the Geneva Victim Support Centre. For criminal proceedings and the strategy of the private claimant, you can also book an appointment by phone or book online .
Practical tools:
- Geneva Victim Support Centre — free legal, social and psychological consultation
- National platform aide-aux-victimes.ch — information and addresses
- Geneva Public Prosecutor's Office — prosecuting authority in Geneva
- Federal Act on Assistance to Victims of Offences (OHG/LAVI) — full text on Fedlex
The injured party may assert civil claims either within the criminal trial, by way of civil claims (art. 122 ff. StPO/CPC), or separately, before the civil court. The criminal route is in principle faster and less costly (investigation costs are borne by the State) and allows the use of evidence taken by the Public Prosecutor. However, in case of acquittal, the criminal court may refer the private claimant to the civil court (art. 126 para. 2 StPO/CPC). For very large damages or where complex expert evidence is needed, a separate civil action may be preferable.
Yes, this is precisely one of the functions of the Act: compensation and moral damages are paid by the canton, not by the offender (art. 19 ff. OHG/LAVI). The victim therefore does not need to identify the offender or to have obtained a civil judgment against him to obtain reparation. Compensation remains, however, subsidiary: it will be granted only insofar as other benefits (insurance, social benefits, damages received) do not cover the loss.
Yes, the injured party may withdraw the declaration as a private claimant at any time (art. 120 StPO/CPC). The withdrawal is final: the status of private claimant cannot be reacquired in the same proceedings. For offences prosecuted only upon complaint, withdrawal of the complaint (art. 33 StGB/CP) in principle ends the proceedings (see chapter Filing a complaint). For offences prosecuted ex officio, by contrast, proceedings continue regardless of the wishes of the injured party.
What is the difference between civil claims and a separate civil action?
My offender has not been identified (or is insolvent): can I still receive compensation?
Can I withdraw from the proceedings if I no longer wish to participate?
Contact
If you would like further advice, please contact the secretariat of the firm by phone to arrange an appointment for a consultation at a flat rate. You can also reach the firm using the contact details below. You can also book an online appointment.
Phone Phone
Tel. : 022 707 99 11
9am-12pm & 2pm-5pm, Mon-Fri
Email Email
Public transport Public transport
By tram : no. 14 and 15, "Stand" stop
By bus : no. 1 and D, "Stand" stop
By car : parking on rue Jean-Petitot
The firm (VS Avocats) is on the 4th floor.
Booking Schedule a meeting
Contact form
Please note that any transmission via the internet may give rise to confidentiality issues and that there is no guarantee that the message will be properly delivered (it may be regarded as spam and automatically deleted by the system). The sender bears full responsibility. In any event, no urgent matters should be sent by form, email or fax. Failing written confirmation, no mandate is deemed accepted by the lawyer.