ISVA FAQ's: Going to Court

Court is a formal environment, and judges are referred to as ‘Your Honour’. It’s unlikely you’ll need to address the Judge directly, so don’t worry too much, but you may hear other people calling them this. Your barrister will introduce themselves to you before you give evidence, and you can go by what they say. Usually, they will tell you their first name but sometimes it will be their surname for example ‘Ms Smith’. 

We can ask the court for your ISVA to sit with you in court or in the video link room while you give your evidence, and the Judge will make the decision. Your ISVA won’t be able to talk to you but can be there as a supportive presence. If your ISVA is not available, or you don’t have an ISVA, you can ask someone from Witness Service can sit with you instead. 

A jury is made up of 12 members of the public who get selected at random from the electoral register to sit on a jury. Their role is to listen to all the evidence and decide together at the end whether they think the defendant is guilty or not guilty. 

The trial can take a few days or a couple of weeks to hear all the different witnesses and their accounts; however, you do not have to be there for the whole trial. You are only required to be there for the time it takes to give your evidence/ your account. If you decide to stay longer that’s your choice but not necessary, so it’s up to you. It is important to be aware though, that if you do decide to watch the rest of the trial, it may not be possible to have a retrial in the event there is a hung jury as you will have heard all the evidence in the case. This is something to think about when deciding whether to watch the rest of the trial or not, as well as the fact it might feel quite difficult to hear some of the things being discussed. 

Anything like the above that you feel will help you and reassure you. If it is something small like a fidget toy or a crystal to hold in your hand then you don’t usually need to ask permission but if it is something bigger like a support animal, then the Judge will have to decide whether they will allow it or not. Your ISVA can provide you with a court bag with some useful bits to take into court, but also to keep you busy in the waiting room while you’re waiting to go into court, for example puzzle books, fidget toys and essential oils. 

The public gallery is open to everyone. The defendant’s supporters, if there are any wanting to attend, tend to be prioritised as they are the person on trial. You can have supporters in the public gallery too but just be aware that they may be sat near the defendant’s friends and family. 

There might be journalists at your trial, especially if it’s a public interest case, but you will never be mentioned by name in anything that is reported. Survivors of sexual violence have lifelong anonymity so the press are not allowed to report anything that might identify who you are. It’s worth talking to your ISVA, SOIT Officer and/or Witness Care Officer if you are worried or need further information around this. 

Yes, is the simple answer. Keep all receipts and ask for an expenses form from the Crown Prosecution Service when you are at court. You can receive expenses costs for travel to court, accommodation (if it has been required for you to stay somewhere overnight), and food if you are there over lunchtime. You can also claim expenses for travel to and from your pre-trial visit if you had one. 

Once all the evidence has been shared at the trial, the Jury will go out to make a decision. Usually, the Judge will ask for a unanimous verdict which means for all 12 members of the jury to agree on the same outcome but sometimes they will allow a majority verdict of 10-2 or 11-1. The jury can reach the verdict of guilty or not guilty. If there are a few charges against the defendant, then the jury may come back with a mixture of guilty on some charges and not guilty on others. If the defendant is found guilty on any or all the charges then they will be sentenced, usually at a later date, but if they are found not guilty on all charges then that is the end of the trial, and nothing further will be done. Sometimes, the jury can’t decide, even if the Judge says they will accept a majority verdict over a unanimous one. This is called a ‘hung jury’ and means there will likely have to be another trial with a new jury. Sometimes before the trial is completed it may have to stop for various reasons. This is called a mistrial and will also mean it will go to a retrial. 

You can decide how you would like to be informed of the outcome of the trial. If you want to be there yourself or watch it over a video link, this can be arranged however you never know when a jury will come back so it can be a lot of waiting around. The officer in charge of the case will be at court for the verdict and so you can ask them to call you to let you know, or you can ask for your Witness Care Officer, SOIT officer or ISVA to be updated and be the person to inform you if you’d prefer. 

Depending on court availability, sentencing can happen immediately after the verdict or can be sometime after. If the sentencing is at a later date, you can attend if this is something you would like to do. 

A VPS is a statement you can write to explain the impact the offence, investigation and trial has had on you. Rather than explaining what happened to you like you did at trial, it is an opportunity for you to explain the impact everything has had on you, and it can also have an impact on the sentence given. If the defendant is found guilty, then it can be read out at the sentencing for the court to hear. You can read it yourself if you’d like to and you are able to apply for special measures to be able to do this, or you can ask the barrister or someone else to read it for you. Once you’ve written it and given it to the police, you can’t change it but you can add to it or write an additional one if you’d like to. If you’re unsure about what to write or where to start, your ISVA can give you a prompt sheet with a few questions that might help you think about what you’d like to include.