Admissibility of Evidence in EPPO Proceedings

Abstract

The issue of cross-border admissibility of evidence is a recurring theme of European Criminal Justice, and continues to be perceived as a decisive obstacle hindering the effective prosecution and adjudication of crime. In spite of this, the EPPO Regulation does not include an extensive framework guaranteeing the cross-border admissibility of evidence. In this article, it is argued that this lacuna is far less worrisome than it seems: the boundaries set out by EU primary law, in particular Article 325(4) TFEU and the Charter of Fundamental Rights (CFR), as well as the opportunity of the ECJ to judge on these boundaries, allow for a sufficient convergence of national laws and practices on the (in-)admissibility of evidence.