The European Arrest Warrant and Fundamental Rights: An Opportunity for Clarity
| DOI | 10.1177/203228441000100104 |
| Published date | 01 March 2010 |
| Author | Theodora A. Christou,Karen Weis |
| Date | 01 March 2010 |
| Subject Matter | Analysis & Opinions |
New Journal of Eur opean Crimina l Law, Vol. 1, Issue 1, 2010 31
THE EUROPEAN ARREST WARRANT
AND FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS:
AN OPPORTUNITY FOR CLARITY
Reference for a Preliminary Ruling from
the Belgian Constitutional Court Lodged on
31 July 2009 I.B. v. Conseil des ministres – CJEU
C-306/09 (OJ C 233/11 – 26 September 2009)
T A. C* and K W**
ABSTRACT
Article 1(3) of the Framework Decision on the Eu ropean Arrest Warrant (FD EAW)
states that it “shall not have the eect of modifying the obligation to respect fundamental
rights and fundamental legal principles as enshrined in Article 6 of the Treaty on
European Union”. A large number of states have implemented this provi sion, together
with Recitals 12 & 13, introducing a mandatory ground for refusal to surrender based
on a possible breach of human rights. e creation of this new ground, not foreseen in
the FD EAW itself, has been c riticized by the Commission and the Council. e legal
power of Article 1(3) FD EAW has not yet been claried by the Court of Just ice of the
European Union (CJEU). It has been provided the oppor tunity by the a preliminary
reference from the Belgian Constitutional Court which has asked the CJEU 4 preliminary
questions, including one on hum an rights as a sole ground for refusal to sur render.
e opport unity to consider the current position of fundamenta l rights within the
context mutual recognition measures and specica lly the Framework Decision on the
European Arres t Warrant (FD EAW) arise s from a preliminary referral to the Court
of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) by the Belgium Const itutional Court.1
* Barrister, Project Ma nager of t he European Cross Border Justice P roject at t he AIRE Centre a nd
PhD Candidate , Queen Mary Universit y of London.
** Researcher Vrije Universit eit Brussel.
1 C-306/0 9.
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