The victims of corporate violence and their needs

These 'Guidelines for Corporations' are aimed at providing a practical and specific tool for a better implementation, by corporations and corporate officers (as far as they, too, can be considered an 'intermediate' but very relevant target), of Directive 2012/29/EU, with specific respect to victims of corporate crime and corporate violence. Building on a previous theoretical and empirical research, in the framework of an international research project on 'Victims and Corporations', this chapter provides a brief overview of the peculiarities and problems related to corporate violence victimization, i.e. to criminal offences committed by corporations in the course of their legitimate activities, which result in harms to natural persons’ health, integrity or life, and whose victims experience a whole range of distinctive risks of secondary and repeat victimisation, of intimidation and retaliation, as well as of harm to their dignity and private and family life. An overview of the harms and risks suffered by these victims is therefore indispensible in view of a competent and effective individual assessment of their specific protection needs.