This book takes stock of the development of criminal law in the context of the EC and the EU, and examines whether this has led to a European criminal policy, and interrogates the legal effects that European-level initiatives in the field have on national criminal law and on suspects.

The EU now possesses a clear legal basis for taking action on criminal law matters and steering the policy and practice of Member States in relation to crime and criminal law. However, for what is now an important area of law, there remains a striking absence or uncertainty regarding its theoretical basis, its legitimacy and its conceptual vocabulary. This book offers a review of the significance of EU criminal law and crime policy as a rapidly emerging phenomenon in European law and governance. Bringing together an international set of contributors, the book questions the nature, role and objectives of such 'criminal law', its relationship with other areas of EU policy and law, and the established rules of criminal law and criminal justice at the Member State level. Taking up such subjects as the application of criminal law across national boundaries and in the broader European context, effective enforcement, and the working out of a new European policy, the book helps to structure an increasingly significant subject in law which is still finding its direction. The book will be of great use and interest to researchers and students of EU law, criminal justice, and criminology.

Although Article 23(5) of EU Regulation 1/2003 provides that competition law fines ‘shall not be of a criminal law nature’, this has not prevented certain criminal law principles from finding their way into European Union (EU) competition law procedures. Even more significantly, the deterrent effect of competition law fines has led courts in the Netherlands and the United Kingdom (UK), as well as the European Court of Human Rights, to conclude that competition law proceedings can lead to a criminal charge. This book offers the first book-length study of whether courts do indeed apply criminal law principles in competition law proceedings and, if so, how these principles are adapted to the needs and characteristics of competition law. Focusing on competition law developments (both legislative and judicial) over a period of twenty years in three jurisdictions – the Netherlands, the UK and the EU – the author compares how each of the following (criminal law) principles has emerged and been interpreted in each jurisdiction’s proceedings: freedom from self-incrimination; non bis in idem; burden and standard of proof; legality and legal certainty; and proportionality of sanctions. The author offers proposals involving both legislative and judicial actions, with examples of judges invoking criminal law principles to develop an appropriate level of safeguards in competition law proceedings. The book shows that criminal law can provide a rich source of inspiration for the judiciary on the appropriate level of legal safeguards in competition law proceedings. As such, it provides an important source of information and guidance for lawyers and judges dealing with competition law matters. "The work is well argued and well researched. Indeed, it is almost encyclopaedic in its use and citation of case law and secondary material....This book provides a valuable resource for anyone (whether as advocate, investigator, adjudicator or academic researcher) who wishes to understand how these criminal law principles are used in, and to protect those subject to, administrative law-based competition investigations.” Bruce Wardhaugh (Lecturer at the University of Manchester) Common Market Law Review, 2021, vol 58, issue 1, page 236

In this book legal and criminological scholars offer advanced analyses of the exercise of the substantive criminal law competences of the EU.

Just a few months after the entry into force of the EU Framework Decision on the fight against organized crime, this book provides an unprecedented analysis of the national and European legislation on organized crime. The book provides a critical examination of the European policies and legal instruments to promote the harmonization and approximation of criminal law in this field (including the United Nations Convention on Transnational Organized Crime). The current level of harmonization among EU Member States and the approximation to the standards of the new Framework Decision are discussed in detail, with the help of tables, graphs and maps. The results highlight the problems surrounding the international legal instruments and the inconsistencies of the national approaches to combating organized crime.

EU Criminal Law is perhaps the fastest-growing area of EU law. It is also one of the most contested fields of EU action, covering measures which have a significant impact on the protection of fundamental rights and the relationship between the individual and the State, while at the same time presenting a challenge to State sovereignty in the field and potentially reconfiguring significantly the relationship between Member States and the EU. The book will examine in detail the main aspects of EU criminal law, in the light of these constitutional challenges. These include: the history and institutions of EU criminal law (including the evolution of the third pillar and its relationship with EC law); harmonisation in criminal law and procedure (with emphasis on competence questions); mutual recognition in criminal matters (including the operation of the European Arrest Warrant) and accompanying measures; action by EU bodies facilitating police and judicial co-operation in criminal matters (such as Europol, Eurojust and OLAF); the collection and exchange of personal data, in particular via EU databases and co-operation between law enforcement authorities; and the external dimension of EU action in criminal matters, including EU-US counter-terrorism co-operation. The analysis is forward-looking, taking into account the potential impact of the Lisbon Treaty on EU criminal law.

European criminal law is explained as a multi-level field of law, in which the European Union has a normative influence on substantive criminal law, criminal procedure and on the co-operation between Member States. This book aims to describe the contours of the emerging criminal justice system of the European Union and to present a coherent picture of the legislation enacted and the case law on European Union Level and its influence on national criminal law and criminal procedure. Among the topics and questions covered in this book are the following: What does mutual recognition mean in the context of the European Arrest Warrant? How can European Union law be invoked by an accused? When is the Charter of Fundamental Freedoms applicable in national criminal proceedings? These and other pertinent questions are dealt with on the basis of an-in-depth analysis of the case law of the Court of Justice and legislation. In addition, the book challenges the reader to assess the mutual (and sometimes conflicting) influence of European Union law and national criminal law respectively and explains how European Union law will usually prevail although national criminal law still remains relevant. The book covers a wealth of court decisions and legal instruments making European Criminal Law, written for practitioners, academics and students, an invaluable source for every European and criminal lawyer This second updated and extended edition covers all recent developments since the entry into force of the Treaty of Lisbon in 2009. Book jacket.