Trauma-informed approach in the justice system and international legal standards for the protection of vulnerable persons
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.61345/1339-7915.2026.1.4Keywords:
trauma-informed approach, secondary victimisation, vulnerability theory, Directive 2012/29/EU, Istanbul Convention, Murad Code, Lanzarote Convention, EctHR, Rome Statute, procedural protectionAbstract
The present article advances the proposition that the trauma-informed approach (TIA) constitutes, in contemporary international and European human rights law, not merely a professional best practice, but an emerging interpretive and operational framework through which binding obligations concerning the protection of vulnerable victims and witnesses are increasingly implemented. Contemporary justice systems are required not only to investigate and adjudicate cases effectively, but also to ensure that legal proceedings do not reproduce trauma or cause secondary victimisation. Methodologically, the article relies on an integrated legal-psychological analysis, combining doctrinal analysis of international and European legal standards with insights from trauma studies, victimology, vulnerability theory and ECtHR case law.
The article demonstrates that procedural insensitivity, including repeated questioning, victim-blaming reasoning, confrontational examination and failure to provide protective measures, may constitute a measurable and legally cognisable harm. It further argues that the Victims’ Rights Directive, child-friendly justice standards, the Istanbul and Lanzarote Conventions, the Rome Statute, the Murad Code and ECtHR jurisprudence together form a coherent normative basis for trauma-informed justice.
The article identifies key obligations for States and competent authorities, including individual vulnerability assessment, prevention of secondary victimisation, adapted interviewing procedures, professional training and survivor-centred safeguards. The novelty of the article lies in conceptualising the trauma-informed approach as a normative bridge between trauma science, vulnerability theory and international legal standards for the protection of vulnerable persons in justice proceedings.
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