Elizabeth Donnelly was SVU's Bureau Chief Assistant District Attorney from seasons 3 to 6. In the District Attorney's office, she serves as the supervisor for ADA Cabot and her successor Casey Novak. Donnelly is elevated to judge in season 7. In the season 10 episode "Persona", Donnelly takes a leave of absence from her role as a judge and resumes her previous role as an Executive ADA to prosecute a cold case she was involved with in 1974, when a battered woman (Brenda Blethyn) murdered her husband. She admits to Benson that she was somewhat responsible for the woman absconding from custody and therefore took on the case due to "unfinished Business." Her role in the escape leads to mishaps in the justice system being termed "doing a Donnelly" for many years to follow. This episode calls attention to the difficulty Donnelly experiences as a woman working in the justice system. But the revelation that the fugitive had been pregnant at the time of her crime leads Donnelly to what, for her, is an act of leniency. She leaves the office, yet again, and returns to the role of a judge.

Since being promoted to Sergeant at the beginning of season 9, Munch has taken more of a leadership role and does less investigating in the field, partially due to the fact that Tutuola was partnered with Detective Lake in season 9. After Lake's departure in the season 9 finale, Munch begins working with Tutuola again, while occasionally acting as squad commander when Cragen was unavailable. In season 13, Munch is seen mostly in the precinct helping with interrogations and research, as Tutuola is partnered with Detective Rollins. He continues to act as squad commander when Cragen is absent. In season 14, Munch is temporarily reassigned to the Cold Case Unit, after solving a decade old cold child abduction case in the episode, "Manhattan Vigil". He returns to SVU in the episode, "Secrets Exhumed", in which he brings back a 1980s rape-homicide cold case for the squad to look into. Munch filed his retirement papers after the events in the episode "American Tragedy", formally leaving in "Wonderland Story". He subsequently accepted a position at the District Attorney's office as an investigator.

Donald Cragen is the Captain of the Special Victims Unit. Florek originally portrayed the character from 1990 to 1993 in the original Law & Order series. During his Law & Order tenure, Cragen was investigated by internal affairs for corruption. During the investigation to prove his innocence, he discovered that he was being framed by his former captain and mentor, whom he turns in and is cleared by IAB. He was an alcoholic for much of his early career, but goes sober after pulling his Service revolver on a taxi driver in a drunken rage. He has remained sober since, even after the death of his wife in a plane crash. Cragen was written out of Law & Order in 1993, as he is transferred to Anti-Corruption Task Force, occasionally making guest appearances on the show. The character was brought back full-time in 1999 to be the Captain of the Special Victims Unit. As SVU Commanding Officer, he is portrayed as a somewhat stern but understanding father figure to the detectives who work under him, often giving them a great deal of leniency because he trusts their ability to get results. Cragen departed at the end of "Amaro's One-Eighty" after his girlfriend Eileen got two tickets for a six-month cruise around the world and he decided to use his unused leave time to carry him through until June.

In the following episode, "Ace", Marlowe and Captain Cragen clash over the way to handle a case in which a baby-trafficking ring is discovered and a young woman and her baby are in danger. Marlowe orders Benson and Stabler to catch the ring's leader in the act, while Cragen wants ESU to take the perp at his warehouse. Cragen remarks to Marlowe, "You're the boss in court counselor, not here." Marlowe leaves the precinct only to have Cragen follow her outside, where he reminds her of "why she really retired" back in 1995: when she was a lieutenant she had sent two undercover detectives who later died in an attempt to arrest a drive-by murderer. Marlowe responds it was a "Command decision." Cragen's detectives do arrest the ringleader, while Cragen saves the young woman in the warehouse. Marlowe is able to convict the leader by using his delivery doctor's testimony, which he delivered in the judge's chambers for protection.

The character was first created for the NBC police drama Homicide: Life on the Street, where he worked as a homicide detective with the Baltimore Police Department. The character was based on Jay Landsman, a central figure in David Simon's true crime book Homicide: A Year on the Killing Streets, a documentary account of the homicide unit's operation over one year. After the series cancellation in 1999, the character was transferred to Law and Order: Special Victims Unit, having appeared within the original Law & Order in cross-over episodes. Within the series, it is eventually said he left Baltimore after his wife cheated on him with a friend. Munch has been the only fictional character played by a single actor to appear on eight different television shows: Homicide: Life on the Street, Law & Order, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, Law & Order: Trial by Jury, The X-Files, Arrested Development, The Beat, and The Wire. He is also mentioned in UK TV series Luther.

John Munch was a detective, and later a Sergeant in the Manhattan Special Victims Unit. A conspiracy theorist and dedicated detective, Munch is first partnered with Brian Cassidy (Dean Winters), whom he thinks of as a kind of younger brother, alternately poking fun at him and imparting (often questionable) advice on life and women. When Cassidy leaves the precinct in 2000, Munch is briefly partnered with Monique Jeffries (Michelle Hurd), and then with Odafin Tutuola (Ice-T). He and the gruff, uncompromising Tutuola get off to a rough start, but gradually came to like and respect each other.

Casey Novak was SVU's Assistant District Attorney from seasons 5 to 9, replacing ADA Alexandra Cabot. Although she quickly loses her innocence when dealing with sex crimes, she still shows uneasiness when dealing with the gray areas of human involvement, preferring the letter of the law to the messiness of each individual reality. Nonetheless, Novak has a 71 percent success rate in the cases she prosecutes, whereas the average for prosecutors is 44 percent. After initial hesitation, she becomes particularly close to Stabler as they bond over being Catholic and a love for Sports. It is revealed that in her final year of law school, Novak was engaged to a man, Charlie, who suffered from schizophrenia. She ended the relationship when his symptoms became so severe she felt she could no longer be intimate with him. In 2002, Charlie attacked her in her home during a psychotic episode. She convinced the police not to press charges, but ended the relationship. He eventually became homeless, and was found dead as a "John Doe" in the spring of 2007. She developed a deep compassion for the mentally ill afterward, but still feels guilty for not being able to help him, as shown in season 9's "Blinded." She states that she is a big supporter of the U.S military. She says that her father was an M-60 Door Gunner on a Huey during the Vietnam War. His helicopter crashed three times and he received a Purple Heart. In season 9, her final year as the SVU ADA, she grew increasingly more reckless and unsure in her prosecution. It is implied that friend and former boss Liz Donnelly aided in her censure, leading to her replacement by ADA Kim Greylek in season 10.

She appeared in the 2006 short-lived Law & Order spinoff Conviction as Bureau Chief of the homicide unit. In season 10, she makes a surprise return to SVU as the temporary ADA, replacing ADA Greylek, for six episodes, starting with the episode "Lead." Although Cabot was absent for the first four episodes of season 11, she becomes their permanent ADA in the fifth episode ("Hardwired") after EADA Sonya Paxton entered court-ordered alcohol rehab. She left SVU in the season 11 episode "Witness" to work for the International Criminal Court to seek justice for rape victims in the Congo. She later returned in the season 13 premiere "Scorched Earth", in which Cabot is the lead prosecutor in a rape case against a man who is the favorite to become Italy's next prime minister. She is the prosecutor in seven episodes, sharing the ADA duties with Casey Novak and Bureau Chief Mike Cutter. Cabot's last episode of season 13 was "Learning Curve" in which she is aiding in the investigation of a school molestation scandal.

In the final episode of the ninth season, Lake begins attending meetings of individuals in Philadelphia who share information on "cold" murder cases. He later shoots and kills a fellow police officer, who was suspected of raping two illegal immigrant girls ten years ago, killing one. Lake disappears while his fellow detectives investigate. They are able to prove Lake killed the other cop in self defense after he was shot at himself by a second NYPD officer with a history of brutality. Lake is found, wounded, and taken to the hospital. The second officer, however, is released after the jury deadlocks. The officer is killed the same night and Lake is found standing over the body and makes no denial to his fellow SVU detectives. He is arrested and last seen in the series sitting handcuffed in a police car. It was confirmed on April 18, 2008 that Lake would not be returning to the series to reprise the role in the subsequent season.

In the season 16 episode "Forgiving Rollins", it is revealed Rollins was raped by her commanding officer in Atlanta, Deputy Chief Charles Patton (Harry Hamlin) in 2010. This comes to light when Patton is in New York for a conference and is accused of rape by one of his APD detectives, Reese Taymor (Dreama Walker), at a Manhattan hotel.

ADA Jo Marlowe is drafted by DA Jack McCoy in season 11 after ADA Alexandra Cabot takes a leave of absence to help rape victims in the Congo. She is a former police lieutenant and Detective Stabler's partner approximately four years before he paired with Detective Benson. She first appears in the 21st episode of the season, "Torch", in which McCoy directs her to handle a case in which two young girls were killed in a fire. Stabler and Benson show up at the crime scene and Stabler is shocked to see his old partner and more surprised to know she now works for the DA's office. Benson believes Marlowe only took the job as SVU's ADA so that she could work with Stabler again.

In the 13th-season finale episode, "Rhodium Nights", Defense Attorney Marvin Exley (Ron Rifkin) tells Benson that Bureau Chief Haden may not be the person he's claiming to be, hinting that it's possible Haden is corrupt or dirty. It is revealed in the season 14 premiere that Haden's name came up on the wire tap in the investigation of an escort Service war. At the end of the episode, after several members of the DA's office were arrested including Bureau Chief Paula Foster, Amaro tells Benson that Haden resigned from the office with Benson responding that he had nothing to do with it.

Dr. Rebecca Hendrix is a former police officer who was at the police academy with Detective Benson. She left the force to become a Psychiatrist. She initially appears for three episodes in the series' sixth season, to replace series regular B.D. Wong while he was performing in Broadway's Pacific Overtures. Within the series, it is said that Wong's character George Huang is on special assignment with the FBI back in Washington. Neal Baer stated that the character also gave him an opportunity to introduce a conflict between Benson and Stabler and said "Stabler hasn't always felt warmly toward psychiatry, but he does warm up to this character—who has been both a cop and a shrink."

As seen in "Heartfelt Passages", Capt. Tucker is a recipient of the US Flag Bar, World Trade Center Breast Bar, NYPD Meritorious Police Duty, NYPD Excellent Police Duty, and NYPD 150th Commemorative Breast Bar.

Elliot Stabler was a senior detective in Manhattan's 16th Precinct, also known as the Special Victims Unit, which investigates sex crimes. He is one of the original members of the squad. A former Marine and a dedicated detective, he has a 97 percent closure rate, but his dedication can turn to obsession and cause him to take cases personally. His dedication to the job also makes him the target for several IAB investigations during the course of his 12-year career at SVU. At the start of the series, he is married with four children. He separates from his wife Kathy during seasons 7 and 8, but they reconcile after she becomes pregnant with their fifth child. Elliot is Catholic, which sometimes complicates the cases he works on, but also helps him form a close friendship with ADA Novak. His partner is Olivia Benson, with whom he generally has a good working relationship, but it is not without tension and friction, especially in seasons 7 and 8 when they are separated as partners for some time. Captain Cragen also makes both detectives speak with Psychiatrist Rebecca Hendrix in order to decide whether they can continue working as partners. Dr. Hendrix tells Cragen that he should split them up only if he wants to lose his two best detectives.

Sergeant Mike Dodds is introduced in the season 17 episode, "Maternal Instincts", as the son of Deputy Chief william Dodds (Peter Gallagher), who transfers to the 16th Precinct to serve as Lieutenant Ashley's second-in-command. He is a war veteran, having enlisted after 9/11 and served in Special Forces. Immediately prior to his transfer, Dodds worked Anti-Crime, and before that, he worked out of the 71st Precinct. Dodds is a consummate professional and devoted to his work; as a result, he takes some time to warm up to his new colleagues but he gradually comes to respect and like them. He is shot in the line of duty while pursuing serial killer Dr. Gregory Yates in upstate New York but eventually recovers. Only a few months into his tenure, he is offered a position with the joint terrorism task force by his father but decides to stay with SVU, boldly going against the Deputy Chief's wishes (the elder Dodds had meant for his son's time at SVU to be nothing more than a career step). In "Manhattan Transfer", Dodds is made Acting Commander of SVU after Lt.Olivia Benson is relieved of her duties. In the subsequent episode, Dodds leads SVU's continued investigation into a sex trafficking ring while continuing to consult Benson. He happily returns command of SVU back over to Benson after the case is closed. In "Heartfelt Passages", Dodds is shot in the stomach during a hostage situation. He makes it through surgery, but he later suffers a stroke in the ICU and is put on life support. After its determined that Dodds is brain dead, he is taken off life support and dies. Both Chief Dodds and the entire SVU Squad were devastated by his death and Olivia Benson suffers from survivor's guilt. It is shown a few months after the tragic event that the Deputy Chief still holds Olivia responsible for what happened to his son. As Olivia herself admits, "he's not wrong".

Esparza was added to the opening credits in season 15, making Barba the squad's fourth full-time ADA. On February 7, 2018, Esparza left the series after six seasons in the episode "The Undiscovered Country".

West returned in the 23rd episode, "Delinquent". When SVU detectives find Hunter Mazelon (Sterling Beaumon) naked and asleep in a young woman's bed, West tells them that she can’t charge Hunter with a sex crime but he can be charged with burglary 1 and Criminal trespass 2, among other charges. When Hunter says during his arraignment that Detective Stabler molested him after handcuffing him, West's case is in shambles since there was also no actual victim. West manages to get Mazelon to allocute, which he did falsely, but Stabler wished for West to call for a recess. Detectives Tutuola and Stabler commented about how they have been burning through ADAs and maybe West cut the deal to cover Stabler so that they would like her.