The costs of proceedings often represent a considerable burden for defendants in the event of an acquittal or discontinuation of preliminary proceedings. The federal government recently presented an amendment to the law on this, which regulates the reimbursement of costs in criminal proceedings.
Previously, the law provided for a contribution to the defense costs in the event of an acquittal by the criminal court, which was capped at different levels depending on the type of proceedings. If the preliminary proceedings were discontinued, there was no provision at all for reimbursement of costs. As a result, many acquitted defendants were left with the majority of the costs or defendants in pre-trial proceedings were even left with all of the costs. This is now changing with the amendment to the reimbursement of defense costs, which came into force on 01.08.2024.
Is there an entitlement to reimbursement of costs in criminal proceedings?
Unlike in civil proceedings, in criminal proceedings there is no entitlement to comprehensive reimbursement of costs for the accused in the event of an acquittal or discontinuation of the preliminary proceedings. This is changing - at least in part - with the latest amendment to the law.
According to Section 196a (1) of the Code of Criminal Procedure, this contribution should include the necessary cash expenses actually disputed by the accused as well as a flat-rate contribution to the costs of the accused's defense counsel; in the event of discontinuation of the preliminary proceedings, reimbursement of costs is established for the first time with a maximum limit of EUR 6,000. In the event of acquittal in the main proceedings, the reimbursement of costs is staggered as follows:
- District court up to 5,000 euros (previously max. 1,000 euros)
- Single judge at the regional court up to 13,000 euros (previously max. 3,000 euros)
- Court of lay assessors/jury court up to 30,000 euros (previously max. 5,000/10,000 euros)
According to Section 196a (2) of the Code of Criminal Procedure, the maximum amount of the contribution can be exceeded by half in proceedings that are characterized either by an extraordinary scope or complexity or have lasted longer than three years. In the case of extremely extensive proceedings, the contribution can even be doubled.
Accordingly, the factors to be taken into account for the increase by half are the scope of the investigation results, the effort involved in the investigative measures, the amount of damage or success caused by the offense in question, the number of offenses to be solved, the volume of files, the number of parties involved in the proceedings, the number of interferences with fundamental rights, the need for expert opinions and the coordination effort; this also applies to the increase by double, but these circumstances must exceed the exceptional scope.
Section 196a (3) of the Code of Criminal Procedure provides for an exclusion of the right to compensation, according to which the right to compensation is excluded if the accused intentionally brought about the suspicion on which the proceedings are based or the proceedings were terminated solely because he committed the offence in a state of incompetence or because the authorization to prosecute was withdrawn. The claim for compensation is also not due if the criminal liability ceases to exist for reasons that only occurred after the criminal proceedings began.
How can I apply for reimbursement of costs?
The increased reimbursement of costs is to be applied to proceedings in which the decisions ending the proceedings have become legally binding as of 01.01.2024; however, only upon corresponding application.
This must be submitted to the public prosecutor's office or the court within three years of the termination of the investigation or acquittal.
If you were acquitted by a court between 1.1.2024 and 1.8.2024 and have already been awarded reimbursement of costs, you can submit a new application for the increased cost contribution.
I would be happy to support you!