Victims' right to review policy
On 3 February 2025, the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) introduced a Victims’ Right to Review Policy (PDF, 443KB). Queensland victims can now submit a request to the ODPP to review a decision to drop all charges against a defendant. A victim or authorised support person has 10 business days to submit a request for review, in accordance with the policy.
Who can request a review?
A victim can request a review, specifically:
- a person who is alleged to have suffered harm as the result of an alleged criminal offence.
- a parent or guardian of a child victim or a victim with impaired capacity who is alleged to have suffered harm as the result of an alleged criminal offence.
- a victim also includes a family member of a deceased person who died as a result of an alleged criminal offence.
A victim can nominate a support person to act on their behalf and the ODPP will communicate with the victim and/or their nominated support person throughout the review process.
Which decisions can a victim request to be reviewed under this policy?
The Victims’ Right to Review Policy supports victims by giving them the ability to request a review when the ODPP decides to discontinue all charges against a defendant relating to a victim.
The policy does not apply to:
- a decision to discontinue some but not all charges against a defendant
- a decision to change or amend a charge/s against a defendant
- a decision to discontinue all charges made at the start of, or during a trial
- a decision to discontinue all charges against a defendant relating to a victim made by the Director of Public Prosecutions.
What assistance is available for victims to complete forms?
When a victim requires assistance to complete the Victims’ Right to Review application form:
- any ODPP staff member can provide support to them
- an interpreter can assist a victim in their preferred language:
- from within Australia: call 1800 512 451 and ask for an interpreter in your preferred language.
- from overseas: call +61 7 3022 6100 and ask for an interpreter in your preferred language.
Submitting your application
A victim can obtain a Victims’ Right to Review application form and submit their request in one of the following ways:
Online
- A victim can apply online through completing the form below and submitting this form electronically.
- A victim can download the Victims’ Right to Review application form (PDF, 246KB) and email or post this to the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions.
A victim can request and/or submit an application form by emailing DPPRighttoreview@justice.qld.gov.au
Phone
A victim can request an application form by calling (07) 3035 1122 or 1800 673 428
Post
A victim can request and/ or submit an application form by writing to:
Right to Review
Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions
GPO Box 2403
BRISBANE QLD 4001
Privacy
The Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions collects personal information from you, including information about your:
- Name
- Email address
- Address
- Phone number
- Commentary or opinion
- Name of another person(s)
- Relationship to other person(s).
We collect this information to process your request for a review of a prosecutorial decision in accordance with our Victims' Right to Review Policy.
We will only use your information for this purpose. It will otherwise not be used or disclosed unless authorised or required by law. Your personal information will be handled in accordance with the Information Privacy Act 2009.
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