Judicial Clothing - Other Jurisdictions - Netherlands and Belgium

Netherlands and Belgium

In the Netherlands and Belgium both, the judge (or judges), the lawyers and the prosecutors dress identically in the form of a black robe and a white band. This is a symbolic act, as it is meant to convey the idea that the judge is merely the representative of Dutch or Belgian law, rather than an elated individual with the power of sentencing people. This idea finds its origins in the time of French revolution. However, there are some slight differences between the judge and the lawyer. The judge wears a black robe, with silk ties on the sleeves and on the closure of the robe. Lawyers just wear a simple black robe. The higher the rank in court, the fancier the robe becomes; the members of the 'Hoge Raad'(high court) wear a velvet black robe with ermine ties.

Previously, Dutch judges shared no common dress as the Spanish Netherlands and the Dutch Republic, as the Netherlands were highly decentralised with only provincial and urban law and no federal law. Hence judges would dress as was the tradition in their own cities or towns.