European Union Criminal Law & Procedure

Researching Criminal Law & Procedure
in the European Union

Last Updated 8/2006. Direct feedback on this page to lawlib@umn.edu.

I. Background

The European Union (EU) is a supranational organization composed of many European countries that have decided to cooperate on a number of issues (economic, monetary, security, etc.) and adopt uniform laws. The European Convention on Human Rights (http://www.hri.org/docs/ECHR50.html) requires member countries to comply with several provisions relating to criminal law and procedure. For general information on EU research, see the guide Researching the European Union. (Several sections of that guide are included below.)

For background sources on European Union law, see Ralph Folsom, European Union Law in a Nutshell (St. Paul, Minn. : West Pub. Co., 2005) [Reserve KJE 949 .F55 2005] or Josephine Steiner, Textbook on EC Law (8^th ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2003) [KJE 947 .S745 2003]. To locate more sources, conduct a subject search on MNCAT using the subject law european union countries.

To search in MNCAT for publications on EU criminal law and procedure, use these subject headings: criminal law european union countries and criminal procedure european union countries. Because the EU requires its members to change their own laws to conform to EU standards, you will also want to research the laws of your specific country of interest. For example, use the subject search criminal procedure france.

An excellent overview of criminal procedure is M.E.I. Brienen & E.H. Hoegen, Victims of Crime in 22 European Criminal Justice Systems (2000), http://www.victimology.nl/onlpub/Brienenhoegen/BH.html. This heavily-footnoted work goes beyond the role of victims; it presents a detailed account of criminal prosecution in each country covered.

II. Where To Start

A. As with researching any international topic, you may want to start with a research guide. Because the European Union's structure and institutions are evolving quickly, a recent guide, such as the LLRX.com guide (#13 below), is probably best:

1. Introduction to International Organizations (Louis-Jacques and Korman eds., New York: Oceana, 1996). Reserve JX1954.I57 1996.
2. Reynolds & Flores, Foreign Law: Current Sources of Codes and Basic Legislation in Jurisdictions of the World (Littleton, CO: Rothman, 1989-). Available from the Law Library's Law-Related Databases page at http://www.law.umn.edu/library/ERDirectory.html.
3. L. Carpenter, Legal Research and the Law of the European Communities (Rev. ed., West Yorkshire: Legal Information Resources, 1997). Reference Office KJE928.C37x 1997.
4. C. Germain, Germain's Transnational Law Research (Ardsely-on-Hudson, N.Y.: Transnational Juris Publications, 1991-). Reference Office K85.G47 1991.
5. Accidental Tourist on the New Frontier: An Introductory Guide to Global Legal Research, chapter 7 (Littleton, Colo. : F.B. Rothman, 1997) Reserve K85.A27 1997.
7. University of Bologna, Research Guide to International Law on the Internet, European Union (http://www.spfo.unibo.it/spolfo/EULAW.htm#inst).
8. UC Berkeley, The European Union: A GSSI Research Guide (http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/GSSI/eugde.html). See also European Union Internet Resources (http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/doemoff/gov_eugde.html).
9. Cornell Law Library, The Nuts and Bolts of European Union Law Research (http://www.lawschool.cornell.edu/library/Finding_the_Law/Guides_by_Topic/eu1997.htm) and European Union Law Information Resources (http://www.lawschool.cornell.edu/library/Finding_the_Law/Guides_by_Topic/eu.htm) .
10. The European Union: A Guide for Americans (http://www.eurunion.org/infores/euguide/euguide.htm )
11. Guide to European Legal Databases (http://www.llrx.com/features/europe.htm#databases).
12.Guide to European Union Legal Research (http://www.law.harvard.edu/library/services/research/guides/international/eu/index.php).

13. Marylin Raisch, European Union Law: An Integrated Guide to Electronic and Print Research, http://www.llrx.com/features/eulaw2.htm

B. Secondary sources such as treatises provide information on criminal law and procedure in the EU, and are excellent starting points:

1. John Hatchard et al. ed, Comparative Criminal Procedure (London: B.I.I.C.L., 1996) KJC 9405 .C66x 1996.

2. Geert Corstens & Jean Pradel, European Criminal Law (The Hague: Kluwer, 2002). KJC7975 .C67 2002. Includes criminal procedure issues.

3. Mireille Delmas-Marty & J.R. Spencer eds., European Criminal Procedures (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2002). KJC9405 .P7613 2002.
4. Christopher Harding & Bert Swart eds., Enforcing European Community Rules: Criminal Proceedings, Administrative Procedures, and Harmonization (Aldershot; Brookfield, USA: Dartmouth, c1996) KJE 7975 .E54 1996.
5. Donna Gomien, Short Guide to the European Convention on Human Rights, 3d ed. (Strasbourg: Council of Europe Publishing, 2005) KJC 5132 .A4195 G66x 2005.
6. P. van Dijk & G.J.H. van Hoof, Theory and Practice of the European Convention on Human Rights (The Hague; Boston: Kluwer Law International, c1998) KJC 5132 .D55 1998.
7. Tom Zwart, The Admissibility of Human Rights Petitions: The Case Law of the European Commission of Human Rights and the Human Rights Committee (Dordrecht; Boston: M. Nijhoff, 1994) KJC 5132 .Z88 1994.
8. Andrew Grotrian, Article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights: The Right to a Fair Trial (Strasbourg, France: Council of Europe Press, 1994) WILSON KJC5183 .G767x 1994.
9. Stephanos Stavros, The Guarantees for Accused Persons under Article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights: An Analysis of the Application of the Convention and a Comparison with Other Instruments (Dordrecht; Boston: M. Nijhoff, 1992)   KJC 5193 .S73 1992.
10.   Karen Reid, A Practitioner's Guide to the European Convention on Human Rights (London: Sweet & Maxwell, 1998) KJC 5132 .R45x 1998 [UK law].
11.   Leif Berg ed., Bringing Cases before the European Commission and Court of Human Rights (Turku/Abo, Finland: Institute for Human Rights, Abo Akademi University, 1997) KJC 5135 .B75x 1997.
12.    L. J. Clements, European Human Rights: Taking a Case under the Convention (London: Sweet & Maxwell, 1994) KJC 5132 .C54x 1994.
13.    Human Rights Today: European Legal Texts (Strasbourg: Council of Europe, c1999)
KJC 5132 .A35 H86 1999.
13.   Donna Gomien et al., Law and Practice of the European Convention on Human Rights and the European Social Charter (Strasbourg: Council of Europe, c1996) Human Rights KJC 5132 .G66x 1996.
15. Francis G. Jacobs & Robin C.A. White, The European Convention on Human Rights, 2nd ed.
(Oxford: Clarendon Press; New York: Oxford University Press, 1996) KJC 5132 .J33 1996.
16. Ralph Beddard, Human Rights and Europe 241-70, 3d ed. (Cambridge: Grotius Publications Ltd.1993) KJC 5132 .B43x 1993.
17. A.H. Robertson & J.G. Merrils, Human Rights in Europe: A Study of the European Convention on Human Rights, 4th ed. ( Manchester: Manchester University Press, 2001). Human Rights library KJC5132 .R64 2001.

III. European Institutions Relating To Human Rights

The European Court of Justice (http://europa.eu.int/cj/en/index.htm) is the highest legal authority in the EC. The Court is empowered to decide cases involving interpretation and application of the Treaties. EU institutions and Member States may appeal and take each other to court for failure to implement or properly apply the Treaties and derived legislation, i.e., the Commission will file a case against a Member State for not implementing a directive. Legal or natural persons may appeal to the Court against a decision addressed to him or any regulation or decision which is of direct concern. The Court will also issue prejudicial decisions in cases referred to it by national courts when questions of Community law are involved. The Court is assisted by advocate-generals, who present a reasoned and independent opinion of the issue of law in the case. In 1989, the Court of First Instance began functioning, hearing disputes between community civil servants and their institutions, actions in the field of competition law, actions under anti-dumping law and actions under the ECSC Treaty.

Documents Text of opinions for both courts officially available in the European Court Reports series (ECR), and unofficially from CCH, Westlaw, LEXIS and other publishers.

The European Court of Human Rights (http://www.echr.coe.int) is not a part of the European Union, but an organ of the Council of Europe. It addresses matters including certain criminal procedural rights embodied in the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental
Freedoms (http://conventions.coe.int/treaty/EN/Treaties/html/005.htm). A useful finding tool, organized by Convention article, is Peter Kempees' A Systematic Guide to the Case-Law of the European Court of Human Rights, 1960-1994 (The Hague; Boston: M. Nijhoff; Cambridge, MA: 1996) KJC5132.A52S97 1996. Another source is Leading Cases of the European Court of Human Rights (R.A. Lawson & H.G. Schermers ed 1997) KJC5138.A6 1997x. The Yearbook of the European Convention on Human Rights (Human Rights Library KJC 5132 .Y437x) also has summaries of the Court's decisions.

Documents Text of opinions available online at HUDOC, (http://www.echr.coe.int/Hudoc.htm)
Official published reports are European Court of Human Rights, Series A (KJC5132 .A52 E88). Series B contains oral arguments, pleadings and other documents [KJC5132.A52E882 (1960-1988)]. European Human Rights Reports (Human Rights Library KJC5132.A53 E97) provide more current, though unofficial case reports.

As of 1999, the European Commission of Human Rights merged into the European Court of Human Rights, but researchers may still wish to use the Commission's earlier decisions.

Documents Collection of decisions = Recueil des decisions / European Commission of Human Rights (KJC 5135 .A5 C65x). European Human Rights Reports (Human Rights Library KJC5132.A53E97) provide unofficial reports. Some decisions appear in the Yearbook of the European Convention on Human Rights (KJC 5132 .Y437x).

IV. European Union Legislation

There are different types of Community law. The primary sources of law are the founding (or constitutive) treaties (from the ESCS Treaty of 1957 to the Maastricht Treaty of 1992). A second source of primary law consists of the treaties between Member States and treaties between the EU and third parties. The major source of Community legislation is secondary legislation: regulations, directives, decisions, and opinions of the Court of Justice.

Regulations are Community laws adopted by the Council of the European Union upon a proposal from the Commission. Regulations have general effect and are directly applicable in all of the Member States.
Directives are Community laws adopted by the Council of the European Union upon a proposal from the Commission. Directives are addressed to the Member States and are binding as to the result - Member States may choose the form and methods of implementation. The process of implementation is called harmonization.
Decisions are Community laws, issued by the Council or Commission, which are binding on those addressed, whether governments, companies or individuals.

V. Legislative Documents

A. The Official Journal (OJ), the official gazette of the Community, is published daily.

The OJ is divided into the following series and parts. The L Series contains adopted legislation including directives and regulations adopted by the Commission and Council, and other binding acts. The C Series is the "Information and Notices" section of the OJ containing non-binding decisions and resolutions of the institutions, texts of proposed legislation, Minutes of the Parliament, Commission and Council replies to written questions, opinions of the Economic and Social Committee, and notices of Court decisions.

Law: L & C Series: (hardcopy 1952-1982) KJE 908; (microfiche, 1982-current) Microfiche JN15.O362. The OJ Special Edition, in English, (1952-1973) KJE 908. The OJ C Series is also available on WESTLAW (EU-OJCSERIES). The OJ is now available on the web at http://europa.eu.int/eur-lex/en/oj/index.html (started in 1998).

B. Citations - What do the numbers mean?

Official Journal:	1993 OJ L 95/29	1993 = Year L95 = Issue in L Series 29 = page # in Issue L95
Regulations:	(EC) 2913/92	EC = Community initials 2913 = number of regulation numbered consecutively 92 = year
Other legal acts:	93/13 (EC)	93 = year 13 = number of decision or directive EC = Community initials

You must know what type of legal act you have since directives, commission decisions and recommendations can have the same citation. For example, 93/13 (EC) could be a directive or a decision.

C. Indexes/Directories to Official Journal

1. Index to the Official Journal of the European Community.
Vol. 1: Alphabetical Index. Issued monthly & cumulated annually; covers EC legislation and lists filed cases and final judgments of the European Court of Justice. Particularly useful with year and subject. Vol. 2: Methodological Table. Issued monthly & cumulated annually; arranged by document number with regulations listed first, followed by directives and decisions. Microfiche JN15.O36 Index
2. Directory of Community Legislation in Force and other acts of the Community Institutions.
Produced in June and December, each publication is a cumulation including all binding secondary EC legislation in force from 1952 to the present. Volume I consists of 20 topical chapters with legislation arranged by subject. Volume II is a chronological and alphabetical index of legislation found in Vol. I. Provides quick access to complete history of legislative acts. Microfiche Room KJE 920.5 D57 (hardcopy). Also available on the EUR-Lex site (http://europa.eu.int/eur-lex/en/lif/index.html) in both an analytical and alphabetical index.
3. European Communities Legislation: Current Status 1952-.
Two volumes with supplement. Beginning with the entries in the English Special Edition of the OJ covering the years 1952-1973, and then on year by year basis, sets out chronologically the reference number of the legal act with title and OJ cite. Also covers legislation no longer in force. Current briefing service newsletter in separate folder. KJE 915.
4. Bulletin of the European Union (formerly Bulletin of the European Communities).
Issued 10 times a year. It reports on the activities of the Commission and the other Community institutions. Contains a subject index and references to the OJ and other relevant documents. HC241.2 .A2. Available on the web at http://europa.eu.int/abc/doc/off/bull/en/welcome.htm from 1996 on.
5. Legislation in Force - Consolidated Texts (http://europa.eu.int/eur-lex/en/lif/index.html).
6. Eurocat (Chadwyck-Healey) on CD-ROM. Index of European Community/European Union publications and documents issued 1985 to date. Also indexes all legislation in force. Updated quarterly. Wilson Government Publications Library (Reference) JN15 .E86x.

D. Other Legislative Documents

Reference to many of these documents can be found in the OJ C series, The Bulletin of the European Union, and other sources.

1. Debates of the European Parliament (part of the OJ). Microfiche JN32. O36.
2. European Parliament, Working Documents (under the title Reports). Microfiche KJE 910.3. E97x.
3. European Parliament, Texts Adopted. Microfiche KJE 910.3 E975x (1988-1989 only; the European Parliament has not continued this set. Texts Adopted are available on the web since 1994 from http://www.europarl.eu.int/guide/search/docsearch_en.htm#texts
4. EUROPARL Homepage (http://www.europarl.eu.int/home/default_en.htm).
5. Commission of the European Communities, Documents. Also known as COM documents. Proposals and amendments issued by Commission, including explanatory memorandum. Numbered sequentially each year and referred by number and date.
Citation format: COM (90) 322 final. Microfiche KJE 5380. A5 C66x. Index to COM Documents (hardcopy) Micro Room KJE 5380. A4 I53x.
See also Official Documents of the Commission (http://europa.eu/documents/comm/index_en.htm).
6. Economic and Social Council, Opinions and Reports. Microfiche KJE 5514. A5 E365x.

E. Official Journal in Electronic Format

The C and L Series of the OJ are included in CELEX, the inter-institutional database for documentation of European Community law. The Official Journal is available on LEXIS, Westlaw (EU-LEG for the L series; EU-OJCSERIES for the C Series), and on the web.

VI. How To Find Directives

These strategies can also be used to find regulations, decisions and other legal acts.

A. Adopted Directives

1. Print with OJ citation:
a. Look in appropriate OJ issue for the given year.
2. Print with directive number only, check:
a. Methodological Table for the year, and it will cross-reference OJ cite.
b. "Finding Lists" in Volume 4 of European Law Reporter (CCH).

c. European Communities Legislation : Current Status to get OJ cite.
3. Print without any citation, but with topic, check:
a. Directory of Community Legislation In Force.
b. "Topical Index" in European Law Reporter (CCH).
c. Encyclopedia of European Community Law (Part C "Secondary Legislation" 11 volumes arranged by topics. Under topics, secondary legislation arranged and reprinted chronologically).
4. LexisNexis: Legal (excluding U.S.) > European Union

LexisNexis Legal > Legal (excluding U.S.) > European Union > Legislation & Regulations Sample Query:

If your cite is 1993 OJ L95/29:
Get a document:

1993 oj l 95

If your directive is 93/13 (EC): directive w/5 93/13

If you have only a topic: use keyword search

5. Westlaw: All Databases > International/Worldwide Materials > European Union

Westlaw EU-LEGIS Sample Query:

If your cite is 1993 OJ L95/29:
FIND:

1993 oj l 95

If your directive is 93/13 (EC): directive w/5 93/13

If you have only a topic: use keyword search

For information about directives, use EU NEWS, or RAPID (EC Press Releases). From LexisNexis, these two databases are available via Legal (excluding U.S.) > European Union > News. On Westlaw, use EURONEWS, which contains general news stories from European and CIS countries.
5. The Bulletin of the European Union is another good source for information about directives.
6. See also some web sites for news and press releases:

RAPID http://europa.eu.int/rapid
Press releases of EU Institutions: http://europa.eu.int/news/index_en.htm
http://europa.eu.int/eclas ECLAS is a bibliographic database consisting of over 200,000 completed catalogue records in the domain of European affairs; about 7 000 new records are added annually. This database includes records formerly found in the SCAD database.

B. Proposed Directives

Proposals for directives are either identified by topic, or if amending an existing directive, by that directive number.

1. Print

a. Bulletin of the European Union.
b. "Finding Lists" in Volume 4 of European Union Law Reporter (CCH).
c. "Topic Index" to European Union Update (CCH).

2. Online. Try keyword search by topic, or if a directive is being amended, by the directive's number.

a. WESTLAW (EU-OJCSERIES) (includes preparatory works) or LexisNexis EU News or RAPID (EC Press Releases)]. Also at http://europa.eu.int/rapid
b. EUROPA. Press releases of EU Institutions: http://europa.eu.int/news/index_en.htm

VII. How To Find Case Law

A. How to Find Citations with Names of Parties or by Topic

1. European Union Law Reporter (CCH)(formerly Common Market Reporter).
Selected cases 1961 - current, cases by name under "Finding Lists" tab. KJE 949. E96.
2. European Community Cases (CCH). Selected cases from 1989 - current.
Under "Index" tab, cases by name and case number. KJE 923.7. E97.
3. Index A-Z: Numerical and Alphabetical Index of Cases before the Court of Justice of the European Communities since 1953. Court of Justice of the European Communities. KJE924.2 .C68.
4. Gazetteer of European Law: Case Search: European Community Law, 1953-1983. KJE 923. H866x 1983.
5. Digest of Case Law Relating to the European Communities. 1982-. KJE 924.8. D533x.
6. WESTLAW (EU-CS; cases from 1954); LexisNexis (Legal (excluding U.S.) > European Union > Cases)
7. HUDOC (http://cmiskp.echr.coe.int/gentkpss/gen-recent-hejud.asp). The online case law collection of the Council of Europe, this database contains cases from the control bodies established under the European Convention on Human Rights.

B. Full-Text Opinions

1. Reports of Cases Before the Court. (ECR)
Also called European Court Reports. Official case reporter, English edition. Delays of two to three years are common. Court of First Instance decisions from 1990. KJE 924.5. R472.
2. European Community Cases (CEC) [Common Market Reporter]
Selected Court of Justice decisions, Court of First Instance and Commission decisions from 1989. See "Topical Index" in current volume for citation of opinion. KJE 923.7 E97. Earlier cases (to 1989) are reported in Reports of Cases before the Court, KJE 924.5. C68x.

3. LexisNexis ( Legal (excluding U.S.) > European Union > Case Law) and WESTLAW (EU-CS).
English version of ECJ cases from 1954; some delays before cases loaded.

4. Court of Justice of the European Communities http://europa.eu.int/cj/en/index.htm.   Search for recent case law at http://europa.eu.int/jurisp/cgi-bin/form.pl?lang=en

VIII. Periodicals

As with other areas of international law, use periodical indexes for locating relevant legal periodical literature: LegalTrac, Index to Foreign Legal Periodicals, etc. Some journals may not be indexed in any of the standard indexes. To locate journals that focus on the EU, search an online catalog using the following subject headings:

law periodicals european economic community;

law european economic community countries periodicals;

law europe periodicals;

law european union countries periodicals;

european communities periodicals;

european economic community periodicals;

european union periodicals.

IX. Current Awareness

1. Bulletin of the European Union (formerly Bulletin of the European Communities). Issued 10 times a year. It reports on the activities of the Commission and the other Community institutions. Contains a subject index and references to the OJ and other relevant documents. HC 241.2.A2124. Available on the web at http://europa.eu.int/abc/doc/off/bull/en/welcome.htm from 1996 on.

2. LEXIS. Legal (excluding U.S.) > European Union > News.

3. RAPID is also at http://europa.eu.int/rapid [Also available on LexisNexis (Legal (excluding U.S.) > European Union > News).]

4. EUROPA. Press releases of EU Institutions: http://europa.eu.int/news/index_en.htm

5. Westlaw (EU-NEWS).

X. Other Internet Sites

Delegation of the European Commission to the United States (http://www.eurunion.org)
Home page for the delegation. Focus is on economic and trade information of the European Union, particularly with the U.S. Text of press releases with archives from December 1995 under News link.
EC Information Society Project Office (http://europa.eu.int/information_society/index_en.htm)
An initiative of the European Commission operating under the joint responsibility of DG III and DG XIII, concerning the information industry.
EuroInternet (http://eiop.or.at/euroint/)
Michael Nentwich of the Research Institute for European Affairs in Austria has developed a EuroInternet page. Numerous links arranged under the following headings: WWW pages with EU information and pointers into the web, EU Institutions, University or academic/research institutions, European Documentation Centres (EDC), Austrian Euro Info Centres (EIC), Further interesting sites in the European context, European resources for political scientists, Databases on Europe, Discussion Lists Relating to European Issues, and European Newsgroups.
RAPID, the database for EC press releases (http://europa.eu.int/rapid)
EUROPARL (http://www.europarl.eu.int/home/default_en.htm)
Multilingual web site of the European Parliament with an overview, news and communications.
European Documentation Centre - University of Mannheim (http://www.bib.uni-mannheim.de/bereiche/edz/en/)
Links for news, databases, online documents, press releases, EU information networks, EU institutions and programmes. Site available in German or English. Online information at http://www.uni-mannheim.de/users/ddz/edz/doku/especial.html includes links by subject areas.

Several sections of this guide (especially the tables) are from The Nuts and Bolts of European Union Law Research, Spring 1997, by Jean M. Wenger, Cornell Law Library.

Updated 8/06.