The way victims and witnesses are treated when giving evidence in court must be radically reviewed, Victim Support said yesterday.
Victims felt the criminal justice system was "heavily tilted" in favour of the offender, the chief executive of Victim Support, Ms Lillian McGovern, said.
"The length of time serious cases take to come to court is a source of enormous frustration and upset for many victims and many feel poorly informed about the progress of their case," she said.
Many cases were taking anything from 18 months to three years to come to trial.
"This is unacceptable from the victims' perspective with such delays adding considerably to the existing trauma they are living with," Ms McGovern said.
"Families affected by a murder are unsure of the role in court, frightened of meeting the defendant in court, unaware of the legal courtroom procedures and exhausted by the slow pace of justice."
Yesterday, Victim Support marked 10 years supporting people through the court process.
It called on the Government and all involved in the criminal justice process to review the process and to provide more judges and additional courts to tackle the backlog of cases.
The organisation provides support to people attending court as witnesses and victims.
Volunteers from the organisation visit the court before the hearing with the person as well as giving support during the trial and afterwards.
