Decision 2002/187 - 2002/187/JHA: Council Decision of 28 February 2002 setting up Eurojust with a view to reinforcing the fight against serious crime - Main contents

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2002/187/JHA: Council Decision of 28 February 2002 setting up Eurojust with a view to reinforcing the fight against serious crime

Official Journal L 063 , 06/03/2002 P. 0001 - 0013

Council Decision

of 28 February 2002

setting up Eurojust with a view to reinforcing the fight against serious crime

(2002/187/JHA)

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty on European Union, and in particular Articles 31 and 34(2)(c) thereof,

Having regard to the initiative of the Federal Republic of Germany and to that of the Portuguese Republic, the French Republic, the Kingdom of Sweden and the Kingdom of Belgium(1),

Having regard to the opinion of the European Parliament(2),

Whereas:

• (1) 

  It is necessary to improve judicial cooperation between the Member States further, in particular in combating forms of serious crime often perpetrated by transnational organisations.

• (2) 

  The effective improvement of judicial cooperation between the Member States requires the immediate adoption of structural measures at European Union level to facilitate the optimal coordination of action for investigations and prosecutions covering the territory of more than one Member State with full respect for fundamental rights and freedoms.

• (3) 

  In order to reinforce the fight against serious organised crime, the Tampere European Council of 15 and 16 October 1999, in particular in point 46 of its conclusions, decided on the setting up of a unit (Eurojust) composed of prosecutors, magistrates or police officers of equivalent competence.

• (4) 

  This Eurojust unit is set up by this Decision as a body of the European Union with legal personality and financed from the general budget of the European Union, except as regards the salaries and emoluments of the national members and assisting persons, which are borne by their Member State of origin.

• (5) 

  The objectives of Regulation (EC) No 1073/1999 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 May 1999 concerning investigations conducted by the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF)(3) are also relevant to Eurojust. The Eurojust College should adopt the necessary implementing measures to achieve those objectives. It should take full account of the sensitive work carried out by Eurojust in the context of investigations and prosecutions. In this connection, OLAF should be denied access to documents, evidence, reports, notes or information, in whatever form, which are held or created in the course of these activities, whether under way or already concluded, and the transmission of such documents, evidence, reports, notes and information to OLAF should be prohibited.

• (6) 

  In order to be able to attain its objectives as efficiently as possible, Eurojust should fulfil its tasks either through one or more of its national members or acting as a College.

• (7) 

  The competent authorities of the Member States should be able to exchange information with Eurojust in accordance with arrangements which serve and observe the interests of public service.

• (8) 

  Eurojust's jurisdiction is without prejudice to the Community's competence to protect its own financial interests and is also without prejudice to existing conventions and agreements, in particular the European Convention on Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters (Council of Europe) signed in Strasbourg on 20 April 1959, and also the Convention on Mutual Assistance on Criminal Matters between the Member States of the European Union(4) adopted by the Council on 29 May 2000, and the Protocol(5) thereto adopted on 16 October 2001.

• (9) 

  In order to achieve its objectives, Eurojust processes personal data by automated means or in structured manual files. Accordingly, the necessary steps should be taken to guarantee a level of data protection which corresponds at least to that which results...

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