The European Arrest Warrant and Human Rights Implications A Jurisprudential Analysis of Refusal Grounds before the Court of Justice of the European Union

Abstract

The European Arrest Warrant (EAW) institutes a fundamental mechanism in judicial cooperation in criminal matters within the European Union. At the core of its legal architecture lies the principle of mutual recognition of criminal judgments. According to the Framework Decision and the jurisprudence of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU), the executing Member State may refuse to surrender the requested person only on the grounds expressly provided for in Articles 3, 4, 4a, and 5 of the Framework Decision, and not on the basis of its national law. However, the CJEU has been confronted with a growing number of cases requiring examination of whether an EAW may be refused due to violations of fundamental rights by the issuing Member State's authorities. This study focuses specifically on human rights concerns related to two key aspects: (i) detention conditions, and (ii) the right to be tried by an independent and impartial tribunal established by law. These two grounds are examined through the CJEU's jurisprudence, with the aim of exploring the delicate balance between the protection of fundamental rights and the principle of mutual recognition. This study argues that the judicial jurisprudence is backing a step-by-step shift from the absolute application of mutual trust towards its redefinition as a conditional principle, aiming to ensure that fundamental rights are guaranteed and safeguarded during the execution of the European Arrest Warrant.