The Needed Balances in EU Criminal Law Past, Present and Future Hart Studies in European Criminal Law Series

This important collection provides an up-to-date overview of the main questions currently discussed in the field of EU criminal law. It makes a stimulating addition to literature in the field, while offering its own distinctive features.

It takes a four part approach:
. Firstly, it addresses issues of a constitutional nature, such as the EU competence in the field of criminal law, the importance of the principle of subsidiarity and the role played by the EU institutions.
. Secondly, it looks at issues linked to the quest of the right balance between diversity and unity, both from an internal perspective (approximation vs mutual recognition) and in the EU’s external relations in criminal matters.
. Thirdly, it focuses on the balance between security and freedom, or in other words between the shield and sword functions of EU criminal law. Special attention will be given here to terrorism.

Finally, it examines the importance of balanced relations between criminal justice actors, both at EU and national levels.

Chloé Brière is an associate member of the Centre for European Law at the University Libre de Bruxelles.

Anne Weyembergh is the president of the Centre for European Law at the University Libre de Bruxelles.