WEYEMBERGH, A., and SELLIER, E., “Criminal procedural laws across the European Union- A comparative analysis of selected main differences and the impact they have over the development of EU legislation”, Policy Department for citizen’s rights and constitutional affairs, European Parliament, August 2018.

This study, commissioned by the European Parliament’s Policy Department for Citizens’ Rights and Constitutional Affairs at the request of the LIBE Committee, examines to what extent differences between national procedural criminal laws hinder the negotiations and the operation of cross-border cooperation instruments. It is based on a comparative analysis of a representative sample of nine Member States. It identifies several forms of “hindrances” to cross-border cooperation, ranging from mere delays to the suspension and the non-execution of assistance requests, alongside the striking underuse of some of the existing instruments. There is no simple or single answer to these challenges. Therefore, several non-legislative and legislative recommendations are put forward for the short- and long-term horizon.