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Criminal Law & Justice vocabulary · Victims' Rights

Compensation

Meaning in criminal law & justice, with examples

/ˌkɒmpenˈseɪʃn/nounCommon term

In criminal law & justice, compensation means: Money paid to a victim for injury, loss or suffering caused by a crime, either by the offender or through a state scheme.

In Turkish: tazminat, zararın giderilmesi

How it is used

Courts can make a 'compensation order' requiring the offender to pay the victim. Victims of violent crime can also 'claim compensation' from state schemes, such as the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme in Britain. People 'seek', 'claim', 'receive' or 'are awarded' compensation.

Example sentences

  1. The court ordered him to pay £800 in compensation to the victim.

  2. Victims of violent crime can apply for compensation from the state.

  3. She received compensation two years after the attack.

Common collocations

  • claim compensation
  • compensation order
  • be awarded compensation
  • pay compensation
  • compensation scheme
  • victimA person who has been harmed, injured or killed as a result of a crime, or who has lost money or property because of it.
  • restorative justiceAn approach that brings victims and offenders into contact, usually through a trained mediator, so that the offender understands the harm caused and tries to repair it.
  • victim impact statementA written or spoken statement in which a victim explains how a crime has affected their life, which the court can consider before sentencing.
  • sentenceThe punishment that a judge gives a person who has been found guilty; as a verb, to give someone a particular punishment.

This word in other fields

The same English word can have a different meaning in another field:

More terms: Victims' Rights

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This page explains English vocabulary for learners. It is not legal advice.