Brexit
Welcome to the Rob Clegg blog. The potential fallout from Brexit for extradition and cross-border criminal justice security had been forewarned even before the first vote was cast in the Referendum. Whilst there is no reference in the TCA to ‘mutual trust’, the general provisions of Title VII, Article LAW GEN 3, state that cooperation between the UK and EU is based on the Parties’ and Member States’ long-standing respect for democracy, the rule of law and the protection of fundamental rights and freedoms of individuals, including as set out in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and in the European Convention on Human Rights, and on the importance of giving effect to the rights and freedoms in that Convention domestically.
For those facing extradition to an EU country the language of the TCA may herald a change in the approach to dealing with extradition requests. This may be optimistic thinking, but during the COVID-19 pandemic legal systems have had to adopt pragmatic solutions. The use of virtual interviews at the police station and full hearings via video link are now common and generally efficient. In certain cases, these tools would be a benefit to all parties in order to progress cases more swiftly and align with the principles espoused under Art 77 and the EA 2003.
The TCA’s incorporation into the Extradition Act 2003 offers some clarity to practitioners as to the process to be followed and is certainly preferable to a no deal scenario but it is too early to see what the practical impact of the changes will be. We expect interesting legal challenges at each stage of extradition proceedings under the new arrangements as practitioners, the courts and criminal justice agencies grapple with the changed regime.
Check back soon for more!
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