EUROJUST - An Overview Background, Structure and Work

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EUROJUST - An Overview Background, Structure and
Work

• Regional Expert Workshop on International
  Co-operation on Counter Terrorism, Corruption and
  the fight against Transational Organised Crime
  7 9 March 2005
• Rajka Vlahovic

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A Short History

• Provisional Pro-Eurojust from 1 March 2001.
• Eurojust Decision Eurojusts constitutional and
  legal foundation.
• Agreed in December 2001 and published on 28
  February 2002.
• Definitive Eurojust since May 2002.
• Preparatory work
• Rules of Procedure
• Appointment of Administrative Director
• Budget 2002 2003
• Move to The Hague December 2002

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THE BUILDING FOR EUROJUST INTERNATIONAL
CRIMINAL COURT
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What is Eurojust ?

• A group of 25 EU prosecutors / judges
• One nominated by each Member State
• Aim -
• to deal more effectively with serious cross
  border crime, particularly when it is organised,
  and involves two or more Member States
  - JHA Council Decision of 14 December 2000

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Eurojust - Membership (1)

• Austria
• Belgium
• Cyprus
• Czech Republic
• Denmark
• Estonia
• Finland
• France
• Germany
• Greece
• Hungary
• Ireland

• Ulrike Haberl-Schwarz - Vice President
• Michèle Coninsx
• Katerina Loizou
• Pavel Zeman
• Johan Reimann
• Raivo Sepp
• Maarit Loimukoski
• Francois Falleti
• Hermann von Langsdorff
• Stavroula Koutoulakou
• Ilona Lévai
• Jarlath Spellman

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Eurojust - Membership (2)

• Cesare Martellino
• Rolandas Tilindis
• Gunars Bundzis
• Georges Heisbourg
• Silvio Camilleri
• Roelof-Jan Manschot Vice President
• Jerzy Iwanicki
• Jose-Luis Lopes da Mota
• Peter Paluda
• Barbara Brezigar
• Ruben Jimenez Fernandes
• Solveig Wollstad
• Mike Kennedy - President of the College

• Italy
• Lithuania
• Latvia
• Luxembourg
• Malta
• The Netherlands
• Poland
• Portugal
• Slovakia
• Slovenia
• Spain
• Sweden
• UK

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Why Eurojust?

• To improve action against cross border crime,
• Existing Mutual Legal Assistance Extradition
  arrangements often lengthy and uncertain.
• Alternative to the European Prosecutor option.

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Aims

• Improve co-operation between Competent
  Authorities in Member States
• Bring better co-ordination of cross-border
  investigations and prosecutions
• Exchange of information
• To make recommendations to change laws to improve
  MLA Extradition arrangements
• To build bridges between different legal systems

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Eurojust Provides

• Easy access to a range of MLA expertise.
• Link to a network of operational investigators
  prosecutors across Europe and beyond.
• A useful source of information on the EAW
  blockages JITs certain types of crime etc.
• Facilities to co-ordinate transnational cases.
• conference and meeting rooms
• translators
• Possible exercise of powers.

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Eurojust has Powers

• Power to make formal requests
• By an individual Eurojust Member
• OR
• By the College (all 25 Eurojust members)
• What if Competent Authority of a Member State
  decide not to comply with a request from
  Eurojust?
• No sanction but must give reasons ..
• except if it will harm essential national
  security or jeopardise the success of current
  investigations or safety of individuals
• Report on failures in Annual Report.

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Eurojusts Powers

• Power to request authorities in Member States
• to investigate or prosecute specific acts
• to accept that one country is better placed to
  prosecute than another
• to co-ordinate with one another
• to set up a Joint Investigation Team
• to provide Eurojust with any information
  necessary to carry out its tasks.

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Key Partners

• Domestic Competent Authorities
• EJN (European Judicial Network)
• Europol
• Liaison Magistrates
• OLAF (Office pour la Lutte Anti-Fraude)
• EU Candidate Countries
• Other Countries Contact Points
• USA, Norway, Canada, Switzerland, etc.

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The work pattern of the Unit

• English is the working language
• Plenary sessions assembled together as a
  centralised unit
• Dealing with case referrals the Tour de Table
• Committee work
• Bi-lateral meetings
• Domestic work days

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Working at Different Levels

• Level 1
• Plenary Meeting of all 25 National Members
• Twice each week
• Level 2
• Only those national members involved in a case
• Level 3
• Investigators prosecutors dealing with a case

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HI-TECH MEETING ROOMS AND TRANSLATION FACILITIES

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Strategic Meetings

• A forum where experts and practitioners can meet
  and discuss
• Terrorism
• Trafficking in human beings
• Trafficking in drugs
• Money laundering
• Fraud

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The EAW

• Framework Decision gives Eurojust 2 specific
  tasks.
• Art.16 -- advice in cases of competing claims
• Art.17 to be informed where time limits for
  execution are not met.
• Case referrals

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Focus

• Focus on key, cross border criminal conduct.
• Meetings Casework Strategic
• Co-ordination
• Role in EAW, JITs.
• Influencing the law makers.
• Identifying blockages, recommendations to
  improve.

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Terrorism - EU Council Initiatives

• Council Common Position on combating terrorism
• - 27 December 2001
• Council Common Position on application of
  specific measures to combat terrorism
• - 27 December 2001 - updated in common position
  22 December 2003
• Council Regulation restrictive measures against
  certain persons entities
• - 27 December 2001
• Council Common position restrictive measures
  against Osama bin Laden Al-Qaeda
• - 27 May 2002
• Council Framework Decision on combating terrorism
• - 13 June 2002

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Terrorism - EU Council Initiatives 2
6. Council Decision on evaluation of national
systems and implementation in fight against
terrorism - 28 November 2002 7. Council Decision
on implementation of measures for police and
judicial co-operation - 19 December 2002 9.
Council Framework Decision on execution in EU of
orders freezing property evidence - 22 July
2003 9. Common Position on combating terrorism -
22 December 2003 10. Council Declaration on
combating terrorism - 25 March 2004
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Eurojust

• Operational Meetings
• - Al-Aqsa Charity fraud
• - EU Letter Bombs
• - Madrid bombing
• Strategic Meetings on Terrorism
• Eurojust Annual Report 2003
• - JHA Council 29 April 2004
• - Eurojust report to JHA Council by end May
• Team Terrorism
• Scoreboard - Action Plan

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Strategic Meeting TerrorismJune 2004

• Focus on Networking of National Correspondents
  and Leading Magistrates Terrorism
• Guidelines related to Council Decision of
  December 19 2002 Terrorism Information Exchange
• Overview of Relevant Terrorist Cases in EU
• Bilateral Multilateral Terrorism Coordination
  Meetings

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TEAM TERRORISM

• GOAL Establish a
• Centre of Expertise in Terrorism
• TASKS
• Lead on terrorist casework for Eurojust. Organise
  meetings
• Update Eurojust Scoreboard

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TEAM TERRORISM

• Define a better approach to receipt and handling
  of terrorism info from open and closed sources
• Emphasise requirements to be supplied with
  terrorist information from national terrorism
  correspondents
• Maintaining contact with any working parties and
  meetings in Brussels covering these topics

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