Les garanties procédurales offertes à la défense face au Parquet européen

Abstract

(Series Information) European Papers - A Journal on Law and Integration, 2021 6(1), 335-356 | Article | (Table of Contents) I. La création du Parquet européen: de réels enjeux pour la défense - II. La défense face à l'absence d'uniformité des garanties procédurales. - II.1. Les difficultés liées à la mosaïque de droits nationaux applicables - II.2. Les incertitudes liées au contrôle juridictionnel des actes du Parquet européen. - III. La défense face à l'absence d'égalité des armes. - III.1. Le constat de déséquilibre né de la création du Parquet européen. - III.2. Les propositions visant à rétablir le droit à un procès équitable. | (Abstract) With the creation of the European Public Prosecutor's Office (EPPO), the position of the defence is weakened. The EPPO Regulation does not set up specific procedural safeguards that are designed to apply to its proceedings: it mainly refers to national law and the minimum guarantees provided under EU law. Moreover, the national courts have competence to rule on the procedural acts of the EPPO and only a few of these acts are subject to EU judicial review. The defendants, in transnational cases, have no foreseeability on the rights and remedies granted to them. This Article is aimed at depicting the main issues that the defence faces in front of the EPPO. More specifically, it focuses on the lack of equality of arms between defence and prosecution in this context. However, the Article proposes some remedies that could be put in place in order to improve the defendant's right to a fair trial, in particular the institutionalisation of a European Criminal Defence network.

Keywords

• european public prosecutor's office
• rights of defence
• procedural safeguards
• fair trial
• judicial review
• equality of arms