Breakdown of De rechtbank vindt hem schuldig.
de rechtbank
the court (district court / court of law)
schuldig
guilty
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Questions & Answers about De rechtbank vindt hem schuldig.
How would you change this sentence to mean "The court is required to find him guilty" using dienen te?
You would make dienen the conjugated verb in the second position and move vinden to the end of the sentence as an infinitive preceded by te. The sentence becomes: De rechtbank dient hem schuldig te vinden. Because dienen te is a highly formal equivalent of moeten (must / to have to), it fits perfectly in a legal context like this.
Is rechtbank the standard word for any court of law in Dutch?
It is the most common one, specifically referring to a district or lower court where most cases begin. If a case is appealed, it goes to a higher court of appeal called a gerechtshof (or simply het hof). You might also see het gerecht, which is a more general term for the justice system as a whole.
We use vinden here for delivering a verdict. Does it map exactly to the English legal use of "to find"?
Yes, schuldig vinden works exactly like "to find guilty" in English, meaning both to hold an opinion and to deliver a formal verdict. However, in formal legal reporting in Dutch, you will also very commonly hear iemand schuldig verklaren (to declare someone guilty) or iemand veroordelen (to convict someone).
What is the root of the word schuldig?