Munich Postgraduate Seminar in January 2013
From January 23rd to 26th, 2013, the ECPI welcomed around 30 international guests to engage in a discussion on European criminal policy. The meeting was started off with a postgraduate seminar for postgraduate (doctoral) students who devote their studies to the field of European criminal law. The seminar was led by Prof. Dr. Nikolaos Bitzilekis, Thessaloniki, (ECPI) and Prof. Dr. Ingeborg Zerbes, Bremen (ECPI), who gave an introduction to the previous work of the ECPI and the current project and its upcoming tasks. The seminar’s first session was kicked off by Dr. Annika Suominen’s (Bergen) presentation on the limits to the principle of mutual recognition. Following Annika’s introduction to the concept of mutual recognition and its scope, Beatríz Garcia Moreno (Castilla-La Mancha) spoke on the relation between judicial cooperation and fundamental rights in the view of the Spanish constitutional court. Dan Helenius (Helsinki) shared his views on effectiveness and proportionality in mutual recognition in criminal matters and asked how these two principles relate: Are we dealing with effective proportionality or proportionate effectiveness? In reply, Federica Iovene (Trento) took a closer look at transnational IT investigations and how to seek a balance between judicial cooperation and the protection of fundamental rights.
Dr. Samuli Miettinen (Helsinki) started the Thursday meeting with a presentation discussing the case of Melvin West (C‑192/12 PPU), who was threatened by subsequent transfers pursuant to the European Arrest Warrant. Samuli wondered whether Europe was on its way towards the free movement of prisoners? Magnus Gulliksson (Uppsala) then took the floor to elaborate on the case of Åkerberg Fransson (C-617/10) and its implications for the European principle of ne bis in idem. Dr. Wendy DeBondt (Ghent) went on to discuss the relevance and added value of ‚offence-diversity‘-based policy making and presented the main findings of her Ph.D. thesis in this regard. Martin Stricker (Vienna) closed the morning session by presenting his take on the effect of de-listing decisions (from so called terror lists) on national criminal procedures.
The afternoon session was opened by Sophie Goliasch’s discussion of whether or not Art. 325 TFEU allowed for enacting supranational criminal law provisions. Christina Peristeridou (Maastricht) went then on to present her findings on foreseeing criminal liability in transnational criminal proceedings. Henning Fuglsang Sørensen (Aarhus) analysed the widely overlooked problem of recompensation for damages suffered from wrongful legal measures taken by prosecution authorities. The afternoon session closed with a presentation by Patrick Lis (Bremen) on Europol’s new cybercrime center and its role in fighting cyber crime and last but not least Doris Serban’s (Cluj) speech on the investigation procedure for cases of market abuse.