Author: Antony Zhilkin
Vice-President Steering Committee
On the 26th of April 2023, thanks to Lorenzo Salazar (Chair of the Collaborate Subcommittee, Deputy Prosecutor General to the Court of Appeal of Naples), an electronic bridge was set up between Milan and Brussels. The Jean Monnet Module in the EPPO and EU Law (STEPPO) was represented by its coordinator Benedetta Ubertazzi alongside Lorenzo Salazar, while the Université libre de Bruxelles (ULB) was represented by Chloé Brière (Professor in European Law) and Laura Schmeer (Research Fellow).
During the online meeting, steps for intensifying cooperation between the Module and ULB researchers were discussed. Since the Module is devoted to the operation of the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO), its activities and research outputs can be valuable for those working on this topic within the ULB.
As a part of the beginning collaboration, we are delighted to offer our readers access to the article “The establishment of the European Public Prosecutor’s Office: Integration with limited supranationalisation?” published by Laura Schmeer (Research Fellow, ULB) in the Journal of European Integration.
The article analyses the establishment of the EPPO as a part of the ongoing European integration. A new EU body with penal powers represents a sensitive step regarding national sovereignty. The presented article describes the relation between the institutional design of the EPPO and sovereignty concerns of member states by uncovering the political processes leading to the creation of this highly complex body. It argues that the Council was divided regarding how far-reaching the authority of the EPPO vis-à-vis member states should be or to what extent member states should retain control over the body. A qualitative discourse analysis shows that the competition between states sharing a supranational position regarding the EPPO and those sharing an intergovernmental position resulted in the creation of a complex and ambiguous body. For full access follow the link (available for the first 50 people only!).
We also invite you to participate in the Summer School on the EU Area of Criminal Justice, which will take place on 3-7 July 2023 in Brussels. Organised by the Institute for European Studies of the ULB and the European Criminal Law Academic Network (ECLAN), the Summer School offers this year a renewed programme, particularly attentive to ensuring that all topics are addressed from complementary perspectives, combining the views of academic experts and practitioners active at EU and national levels.
The 2023 edition of the Summer School will be centred on the wider and ever-increasing role of EU actors in criminal law, including the EPPO, and provide its participants with a well-rounded understanding of the complexities of this evolving field. Also, the evening conference will be devoted to a new, pressing issue attracting unprecedented developments in EU criminal law: the role of EU actors in the fight against core international crimes.
To register, please send an email with your CV to eclan.network@gmail.com.
For more information, please, visit the website of the ECLAN on this page.
Stay tuned for more updates and check out our blog!