Legislation was drafted to make it possible to try the suspects in the Netherlands.
New legislation was needed because of the unique nature of the MH17 trial and its international scope. The legislation empowers the court to allow certain parts of the trial to be conducted in English, for instance so that the relatives of the victims can exercise their right to address the court. In addition, an extremely rare exception will be made to the right of defendants to be physically present in the courtroom. It will be possible for defendants to take part in the trial remotely by means of video conferencing technology.