Mutual Recognition and Double Criminality in EAW: Comparative Challenges and Future Prospects

The primary shortcomings of the European framework for double criminality are so well known that they now appear almost self-evident. The European Union has failed in its attempt to accomplish a political process of harmonisation: a single code covering all the Member States is far from being achieved, even more so in the punitive dimension. Instead, each legal system detains largely divergent criminal provisions, fuelling continuous challenges for judicial cooperation in criminal matters. In this perspective, double criminality encapsulates a relevant stress test for the enforcement of mutual recognition,1 in contrast with the rationale of Arts 67 and 82 TFEU even though not always on grounds of protecting fundamental rights