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Netherlands

The justice system of the Netherlands

A decentralised-unitary, civil-law system under a codified constitution — with two features that surprise common-law readers: a prosecution service inside the judiciary but under the minister, and no judicial review of statutes.

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Facts on this page were checked against their sources on .

The Netherlands is a constitutional monarchy with a civil-law legal tradition. Its justice system rests on the Constitution of the Kingdom of the Netherlands (the Grondwet), whose Chapter 6 governs the administration of justice, and on codes and Acts of Parliament. Under Article 113, the trial of offences is the responsibility of the judiciary, and a sentence depriving a person of liberty may be imposed only by the judiciary.

Courts specified by statute
Article 116 provides that the courts forming part of the judiciary are specified by Act of Parliament, and that their organisation, composition and powers are regulated by statute. There is one national court system, not a provincial or municipal one.
Judicial independence
Article 117 provides that judges responsible for the administration of justice, and the Procurator General at the Supreme Court, are appointed for life by Royal Decree and may be suspended or dismissed only by a court designated by law — the constitutional guarantee of judicial independence.
Prosecution inside the judiciary
The Public Prosecution Service is part of the judiciary, but — unlike the courts — it is under the political responsibility of the Minister of Justice and Security. The prosecution module explains why this makes the Dutch prosecutor a different kind of office from an independent Director of Public Prosecutions.

The same idea, explained generally

  • What is justice?

    Justice is the principle that people should be treated according to rules that apply equally to everyone, decided by bodies that are authorised, constrained, and answerable. This guide explains what that means institutionally.

  • What is the rule of law?

    The rule of law is the principle that everyone, including the government, is subject to law that is public, applied equally, and interpreted by independent courts. This guide explains what it requires and what it does not.

  • What do courts do?

    Courts resolve disputes, test the state’s case against individuals, interpret law, and review public decisions. This guide explains those functions and why judicial independence is structural.

Sources

Sources

  1. The Constitution of the Kingdom of the Netherlands 2008 (official English translation)

    Government of the Netherlands (Ministry of the Interior and Kingdom Relations) · Legislation · 2008 · link verified 2026-07-26

    The official English translation of the Grondwet, fetched as a government.nl PDF and text-extracted. Supports Chapter 6 (administration of justice): Art. 112–113 (adjudication and trial of offences are the judiciary's), Art. 114 ("Capital punishment may not be imposed"), Art. 116 ("The courts which form part of the judiciary shall be specified by Act of Parliament"), Art. 117 (judges and the Procurator General at the Supreme Court appointed for life by Royal Decree — the independence guarantee), Art. 118 (the Supreme Court and cassation), Art. 120 ("The constitutionality of Acts of Parliament and treaties shall not be reviewed by the courts" — no constitutional review of statutes), and Art. 78a (the National Ombudsman). The authoritative text is the Dutch original; this English version is an official reference translation.WAVE 21 ADDITION. Read from the official consolidated Dutch text of the Grondwet at wetten.overheid.nl (BWBR0001840), article by article; the Dutch text is authoritative. Supports Art. 10(1): “Ieder heeft, behoudens bij of krachtens de wet te stellen beperkingen, recht op eerbiediging van zijn persoonlijke levenssfeer”, with 10(2)-(3) on personal-data rules and access. Supports Art. 12(1)-(3): “1 Het binnentreden in een woning zonder toestemming van de bewoner is alleen geoorloofd in de gevallen bij of krachtens de wet bepaald, door hen die daartoe bij of krachtens de wet zijn aangewezen. 2 Voor het binnentreden overeenkomstig het eerste lid zijn voorafgaande legitimatie en mededeling van het doel van het binnentreden vereist, behoudens bij de wet gestelde uitzonderingen. 3 Aan de bewoner wordt zo spoedig mogelijk een schriftelijk verslag van het binnentreden verstrekt. Indien het binnentreden in het belang van de nationale veiligheid of dat van de strafvordering heeft plaatsgevonden, kan volgens bij de wet te stellen regels de verstrekking van het verslag worden uitgesteld.” The VERIFIED NEGATIVE this supports is textual: Art. 12 contains no requirement of judicial authorisation. Supports Art. 13: “1 Ieder heeft recht op eerbiediging van zijn brief- en telecommunicatiegeheim. 2 Beperking van dit recht is mogelijk in de gevallen bij de wet bepaald met machtiging van de rechter of, in het belang van de nationale veiligheid, door of met machtiging van hen die daartoe bij de wet zijn aangewezen.” Supports Art. 15(1)-(2): no one may be deprived of liberty outside cases determined by or pursuant to statute; a person deprived of liberty otherwise than by judicial order may request the court for release, is heard within a statutorily determined period, and the court orders immediate release if it judges the deprivation unlawful. Supports Art. 93: “Bepalingen van verdragen en van besluiten van volkenrechtelijke organisaties, die naar haar inhoud een ieder kunnen verbinden, hebben verbindende kracht nadat zij zijn bekendgemaakt.” Supports Art. 94: “Binnen het Koninkrijk geldende wettelijke voorschriften vinden geen toepassing, indien deze toepassing niet verenigbaar is met een ieder verbindende bepalingen van verdragen en van besluiten van volkenrechtelijke organisaties.” Supports Art. 120: “De rechter treedt niet in de beoordeling van de grondwettigheid van wetten en verdragen.” Supports Art. 121, that hearings take place in public and judgments state the grounds on which they rest, except in cases determined by statute. Reading Arts. 93, 94 and 120 together is what supports the finding that a Dutch court may not review a statute against the Constitution but must decline to apply it where it conflicts with a self-executing treaty provision. Constitutional text only — no decision of the Hoge Raad, no statute, nothing about any other country.

  2. National ordinary courts — Netherlands (European e-Justice Portal)

    European Commission (European e-Justice Portal) · International organisation · link verified 2026-07-26

    The European Commission's e-Justice portal page on the Dutch court system, read directly. Supports the hierarchy: 11 district courts (rechtbanken) → 4 courts of appeal (gerechtshoven) → the Hoge Raad der Nederlanden (Supreme Court of the Netherlands), highest court in civil, criminal and tax law, exercising cassation; and the separate highest administrative courts (the Administrative Jurisdiction Division of the Council of State, the Centrale Raad van Beroep, and the College van Beroep voor het bedrijfsleven). Establishes that there is no single unified apex and no constitutional court.

  3. New Code of Criminal Procedure enters into force 1 April 2029

    Government of the Netherlands · Government publication · 2024-03-20 · link verified 2026-07-26

    Government of the Netherlands news item, read directly. Supports that a new Code of Criminal Procedure (Wetboek van Strafvordering) is planned to enter into force on 1 April 2029, replacing the 1926 code, with the first enactment act (Books 1–6) submitted to the House of Representatives in 2023 and further books to follow — i.e. it is in the legislative process, not yet fully enacted. It is procedural reform and does not restructure the courts, the OM, the national police or DJI, so it is recorded in prose rather than as a scheduled institutional change.