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Case Law C-617/10 (12/06/2012)

Type: Opinions of Advocate General

Authority: European Authorities: Euopean Union' Court of Justice

Date: 06/12/2012

Subject: The Advocate General examines the scope of the ne bis in idem principle under EU law and he states that the ECHR recognizes this principle. The ECHR precludes measures which impose both an administrative and a criminal penalty in respect of the same facts. Nonetheless, the Advocate General underlines that this principle laid down in the ECHR has not been unanimously accepted by the States signatories to the ECHR, including a number of Member States of the EU. On the basis of that the Advocate General considers that the requirement that the Charter is to be interpreted in light of the ECHR must be qualified when a fundamental right recognized by the ECHR (the prohibition of the imposition of both administrative and criminal penalties for the same offence) has been incorporated fully into national law by all EU Member States. The Advocate general affirms that the language used in the Charter stresses the criminal law dimension of the ne bis in idem principle. Consequently, he suggests to the Court to rule that the Charter does not preclude the Member States from bringing criminal proceedings relating to facts in respect of which a final penalty has already been imposed in administrative proceedings, provided that the criminal court is in a position to take into account the prior existence on an administrative penalty for the purposes of mitigating the criminal penalty to be imposed by it. Article 50: right not to be tried or punished twice in criminal proceeding for the same criminal

Parties: Ã…klagaren c. Hans Ã…kerberg Fransson

Classification: Justice - Art. 50 Right not to be tried or punished twice in criminal proceedings for the same criminal offence - General provisions - Art. 52 Scope of guaranteed rights - Correspondence to rights guaranteed by the european convention for the protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms

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