Transnational crime is now recognized as a global issue that must be addressed through collaboration among States and their judicial and law enforcement authorities. In this direction, States have developed a series of regulatory responses within international organisations, both at the global and regional levels. The European Union (EU) has even created the European area of freedom, security, and justice, endowing itself with police and judicial cooperation tools, as well as a specific criminal law competence in the field. However, in the European Union, this phenomenon was posing a particularly serious problem due to the Single Market and the Schengen system, which had established a nearly borderless region. Despite the general understanding of the urgent need to address these new challenges of crime, only the Treaty of Lisbon’s implementation signaled a turning point. After a protracted and laborious process, this Treaty on the reform of the European Union provided significant, albeit incomplete, answers for the formalization of the Union’s criminal competence in the areas of particularly serious crime with a cross-border dimension, raising a number of concerns that will be addressed.
THE EVOLUTION OF EUROPEAN CRIMINAL COMPETENCE IN THE FIGHT AGAINST TRANSNATIONAL CRIME
Teresa Russo
2024-01-01
Abstract
Transnational crime is now recognized as a global issue that must be addressed through collaboration among States and their judicial and law enforcement authorities. In this direction, States have developed a series of regulatory responses within international organisations, both at the global and regional levels. The European Union (EU) has even created the European area of freedom, security, and justice, endowing itself with police and judicial cooperation tools, as well as a specific criminal law competence in the field. However, in the European Union, this phenomenon was posing a particularly serious problem due to the Single Market and the Schengen system, which had established a nearly borderless region. Despite the general understanding of the urgent need to address these new challenges of crime, only the Treaty of Lisbon’s implementation signaled a turning point. After a protracted and laborious process, this Treaty on the reform of the European Union provided significant, albeit incomplete, answers for the formalization of the Union’s criminal competence in the areas of particularly serious crime with a cross-border dimension, raising a number of concerns that will be addressed.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
