Criminal liability as it pertains to joint participation in criminal offences has been extensively discussed throughout the last decade in The Netherlands. Various judgments from the Supreme Court have addressed this criminal concept and have expanded the interpretation of this legal construct. As a result, the legal relationship between the Dutch concepts of ‘joint perpetration’ (medeplegen) and ‘assistance to criminal offences’ (medeplichtigheid) has changed. These cases and their outcomes will be discussed against the background of the law on participation in crime in Dutch, French, German, Austrian and Italian criminal law. As this conference explores the legal evolution of participation in crime in The Netherlands, as well as addresses the various legal approaches implemented in the surrounding aforementioned countries, it is of interest to legal scholars, members of the judiciary, legislators and other legal practitioners. Caroline Fournet, ECIA Fellow, professor of criminal law at the University of Groningen will chair this international conference organized by the Department of Criminal Law and Criminology of the University of Groningen and the Groningen Centre for Law and Governance.