Towards a European Criminal Record

The success of the four core freedoms of the EU has created fertile ground for transnational organised crime. Innovative, transnational legal weapons are therefore required by national authorities. The availability of data on criminal convictions is at the forefront of the debate. But which mechanism for availability can be used effectively while at the same time respecting an increasingly higher level of data protection at national level? In the fluid, post-'Reform Treaty' environment, the EU is moving towards the creation of a European Criminal Record which will ultimately secure availability of criminal data beyond the weaknesses of Mutual Legal Assistance mechanisms. Examining the concept of a European Criminal Record in its legal, political and data protection dimensions, this multidisciplinary study is an indispensable exploration of a major initiative in European Criminal Law which is set to monopolise the debate on EU judicial co-operation and enforcement.

1. Introduction: how the idea of a European Criminal Record came to be Constantin Stefanou and Helen Xanthaki; 2. The European Criminal Record: analysis Helen Xanthaki; 3. The European Criminal Record: the political parameters Constantin Stefanou; 4. The European Criminal Record: human rights considerations Alexandra Xanthaki; 5. The European Criminal Record in Austria Robert Kert; 6. The European Criminal Record in the Czech Republic Jaroslav Fenyk; 7. The European Criminal Record in Germany Lorenz Boellinger; 8. The European Criminal Record in Greece Maria Gavouneli and Pantelis Traianos; 9. The European Criminal Record in Hungary Katalin Ligeti; 10. The European Criminal Record in Ireland Ivana Bacik; 11. The European Criminal Record in the Netherlands Oswald Jansen; 12. The European Criminal Record in Slovenia Katja Sugman and Dragan Petrovec; 13. The European Criminal Record in Slovakia Anna Ondrejova; 14. The European Criminal Record in Spain Francisco Javier Garcia Fernandez; 15. The European Criminal Record in England and Wales Lisa Webley; 16. Databases in the area of freedom, security and justice: lessons for the centralisation of records and their maximum exchange Valsamis Mitsilegas; 17. A European Criminal Records Database: an integrated model Els de Busser; 18. The European Criminal Record: feasible or folly? Helen Xanthaki; 19. Conclusions Constantin Stefanou and Helen Xanthaki.