How do you say “Give someone the benefit of the doubt” in German?

The English idiom 'give someone the benefit of the doubt' has no direct, word-for-word counterpart in everyday German. Instead, German speakers rely on descriptive phrasing based on the legal concept of doubt, most commonly 'im Zweifel für jemanden entscheiden' (to decide in someone's favor in doubt) or 'jemandem im Zweifel glauben' (to believe someone when in doubt).

In casual conversations, native speakers also frequently borrow the legal proverb 'im Zweifel für den Angeklagten' ('in dubio pro reo') in a slightly tongue-in-cheek way to express the exact same sentiment. In professional settings, 'jemandem einen Vertrauensvorschuss geben' is often preferred, though it leans more toward granting proactive trust rather than resolving specific doubts.