In an era in which the EU's influence in criminal law matters has expanded rapidly, attention has recently turned to the possible creation of a European Public Prosecutor's Office. This two volume work presents the results of a study carried out by a group of European criminal law experts in 2010-2012, with the financial support of the EU Commission, whose aims were to examine in detail current public prosecution systems in the Member States and to scrutinise proposals for a new European office. Volume 1 begins with thorough descriptions of 20 different national legal systems of investigation and prosecution, addressing a range of evidential and procedural safeguards. These will serve as a point of reference for all future research on public prosecutors. Volume 1 also contains a series of cross-cutting studies of the key issues that will inform debates about the creation of a European Public Prosecutor's Office, including studies of vertical cooperation in administrative investigations in subsidy and competition cases, the accession of the EU to the ECHR, judicial control in cooperation in criminal matters, mutual recognition and decentralised enforcement of European competition law. Volume 2 (which will be published in 2013) presents a draft set of model rules for the procedure of the European Public Prosecutor's Office and continues with a set of comparative studies of the national legal systems that cover the gathering of evidence, seizure of assets, arrests, tracking and tracing, prosecution measures, procedural safeguards, the presumption of innocence and the right to silence, access to the file and victim reconciliation. Volume 2 concludes with the final report, written by Professor Ligeti, summarising the findings of the group and reporting on the prospects for the proposed reform.

"Volume 1 begins with thorough descriptions of 24 different national legal systems of investigation and prosecution, addressing a range of evidential and procedural safeguards. These will serve as a point of reference for all future research on public prosecutors. Volume 1 also contains a series of cross-cutting studies of the key issues which will inform debates about the creation of a European Public Prosecutor's Office, including studies of vertical cooperation in administrative investigations in subsidy and competition cases, the accession of the EU to the ECHR, judicial control in cooperation in criminal matters, mutual recognition, and decentralised enforcement of European competition law."--Publisher.

This is the second of a two volume work which presents the results of a study carried out by a group of European criminal law experts, with the financial support of the EU Commission in 2010-2011, whose aims were to examine in detail current public prosecution systems in the Member States and to scrutinise proposals for a new European office.

This book explores the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO), the creation of which was approved in the Regulation adopted by the Justice and Home Affairs (JHA) Council on 12 October 2017. The EPPO will be an independent European prosecution office tasked with investigating and prosecuting those crimes defined in the recently adopted Regulation 2017/1371 on combating fraud against the Union’s financial interests by means of criminal law. As such, it will be a new actor on the EU landscape, governed by the principle of loyal cooperation with the national prosecuting authorities. This work clarifies some of the challenges that member states will have to face when dealing with a supranational prosecution authority. In addition, it provides guidelines on how to implement the present Regulation while respecting the fundamental rights of defendants in criminal proceedings. The book is of special interest in so far as the analysis and perspective of academics is completed with the contributions of legal experts who have either been involved in the negotiations to establish the European public prosecutor or will be closely linked, as public prosecutors, to the functioning of the future European public prosecutor’s office.

In an era in which the EU's influence in criminal law matters has expanded rapidly, attention has recently turned to the possible creation of a European Public Prosecutor's Office. This two volume work presents the results of a study carried out by a group of European criminal law experts in 2010-2012, with the financial support of the EU Commission, whose aims were to examine in detail current public prosecution systems in the Member States and to scrutinise proposals for a new European office. Volume 1 begins with thorough descriptions of 20 different national legal systems of investigation and prosecution, addressing a range of evidential and procedural safeguards. These will serve as a point of reference for all future research on public prosecutors. Volume 1 also contains a series of cross-cutting studies of the key issues that will inform debates about the creation of a European Public Prosecutor's Office, including studies of vertical cooperation in administrative investigations in subsidy and competition cases, the accession of the EU to the ECHR, judicial control in cooperation in criminal matters, mutual recognition and decentralised enforcement of European competition law. Volume 2 (which will be published in 2013) presents a draft set of model rules for the procedure of the European Public Prosecutor's Office and continues with a set of comparative studies of the national legal systems that cover the gathering of evidence, seizure of assets, arrests, tracking and tracing, prosecution measures, procedural safeguards, the presumption of innocence and the right to silence, access to the file and victim reconciliation. Volume 2 concludes with the final report, written by Professor Ligeti, summarising the findings of the group and reporting on the prospects for the proposed reform.

In November 2017, Council Regulation (EU) 2017/1939 implementing enhanced cooperation on the establishment of the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (‘EPPO’) entered into force. The EPPO is a new body of the European Union that will investigate and prosecute perpetrators of criminal offences affecting the financial interests of the Union. Being the first EU authority to exercise direct powers vis-à-vis individuals in the field of criminal law, the EPPO represents a paradigm shift in the EU criminal justice field and requires several amendments of national legislation. The Member States that take part in the EPPO enhanced cooperation are currently in the process of implementing the Regulation in order to make their criminal justice systems compatible with its provisions, and allow the EPPO to carry out its activities once the Office will be up and running. Building on the Symposium that took place in Coimbra on 29–30 March 2017, which was co-organised by the European Criminal Law Academic Network (ECLAN) and the Instituto Jurídico of the Law Faculty of the University of Coimbra, this book offers a Comprehensive overview of crucial aspects of this ambitious and debated EU initiative, in both its European and national dimensions. It aims to analyse key issues related to the functioning and legitimacy of the EPPO from a European perspective, such as EPPO independence and material competence, judicial review of its acts, and protection of fundamental rights in the framework of EPPO proceedings. At the same time, it also represents the first publication that, in the wake of the Regulation’s adoption, discusses the challenges that the implementation of this EU legal instrument is currently raising in some Member States, namely Austria, Finland, Germany, Lithuania, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands.