Initiative of the Kingdom of Belgium, the French Republic, the Kingdom of Spain and the United Kingdom with a view to adopting a Council Framework Decision on joint investigation teams
Date: 2001-10-20
Institutions: Belgium, France, Spain, United Kingdom
Subjects: cooperation policy, fact-finding mission, judicial inquiry, public safety

20.10.2001

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 295/9

Initiative of the Kingdom of Belgium, the French Republic, the Kingdom of Spain and the United
Kingdom with a view to adopting a Council Framework Decision on joint investigation teams

(2001/C 295/06)

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty on the European Union, and in
particular Article 34(2) (b) thereof,

Having regard to the initiative of the Kingdom of Belgium, the
French Republic,
the Kingdom of Spain and the United
Kingdom,

Having regard to the Opinion of the European Parliament,

Whereas:

(1) One of the Union’s objectives is to provide citizens with a
high level of safety within an area of freedom, security
and justice and this objective is to be achieved by
preventing and combating crime through closer coop-
eration between police forces, customs authorities and
other competent authorities in the Member States.

(2) The European Council held in Tampere on 15 and 16
investigation teams as
October 1999 called for
foreseen in the Treaty to be set up without delay, as a
first step,
trafficking in drugs and human
beings as well as terrorism.

to combat

joint

(3) Provision has been made in Article 13 of the Convention
established by the Council in accordance with Article 34
of the Treaty on European Union on mutual assistance in
the
criminal matters between the Member States of
European Union (1) for the establishment and operation
of joint investigation teams.

(4) The Council urges that all measures be taken to ensure
that this Convention is ratified as soon as possible, and in
any event in the course of 2002.

(5) The Council recognises that it is important to respond
quickly to the European Council’s call for the setting up
of joint investigative teams without delay.

(6) The Council considers that for the purpose of combating
international crime as effectively as possible, it is appro-
stage a specific legally binding
priate that at
instrument on joint
should be
adopted at the level of the Union which should apply to
joint investigations into trafficking in drugs and human
beings as well as terrorism.

investigation teams

this

(1) OJ C 197, 12.7.2000, p. 1.

(7) The Council considers that such teams should be set up,
as a matter of priority, to combat offences committed by
terrorists.

(8) The Member States that set up a team should decide on its

composition, purpose and duration.

(9) The Member States setting up a team should have the
possibility to decide, where possible and in accordance
with applicable law, to let persons not representing the
competent authorities of Member States take part in the
activities of the team, and that such persons may include
representatives of, for example, Europol, the Commission
(OLAF) or representatives of authorities of non-Member
of
States,
law
enforcement authorities of
In such
cases the agreement setting up the team should specify
issues relating to possible liability for such representatives.

representatives
the United States.

particular

and

in

(10) A joint investigating team should operate in the territory
of a Member State in conformity with the law applicable
to that Member State.

(11) This Framework Decision should be without prejudice to
any other existing provisions or arrangements on the
setting up or operation of joint investigation teams,

HAS ADOPTED THIS FRAMEWORK DECISION:

Article 1

Joint investigation teams

1.
By mutual agreement, the competent authorities of two
or more Member States may set up a joint investigation team
for a specific purpose and a limited period, which may be
extended by mutual consent,
investi-
gations in one or more of the Member States setting up the
team. The composition of the team shall be set out in the
agreement.

to carry out criminal

A joint investigation team may, in particular, be set up where:

(a) a Member State’s

into criminal offences
require difficult and demanding investigations having links
with other Member States;

investigations

(b) a number of Member States are conducting investigations
into criminal offences in which the circumstances of the
case necessitate coordinated, concerted action in the
Member States involved.

C 295/10

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

20.10.2001

A request for the setting-up of a joint investigation team may
be made by any of the Member States concerned. The team
shall be set up in one of the Member States in which the
investigations are expected to be carried out.

2.
In addition to the information referred to in the relevant
provisions of Article 14 of the European Convention on Mutual
Assistance in Criminal Matters and Article 37 of the Benelux
Treaty of 27 June 1962, as amended by the Protocol of 11 May
1974, requests for the setting-up of a joint investigation team
shall include proposals for the composition of the team.

3.
A joint investigation team shall operate in the territory of
the Member States setting up the team under the following
general conditions:

Member State under the conditions which would apply if
they were requested in a national investigation.

8. Where the joint investigation team needs assistance from
a Member State other than those which have set up the team,
or from a third State, the request for assistance may be made
by the competent authorities of the State of operations to the
competent
concerned in
accordance with the relevant instruments or arrangements.

the other State

authorities of

the joint

A member of

investigation team may,

in
9.
law and within the
accordance with his or her national
limits of his or her competence, provide the team with
information available
in the Member State which has
seconded him or her for the purpose of the criminal investi-
gations conducted by the team.

(a) The leader of the team shall be a representative of the
competent authority participating in criminal investigations
from the Member State in which the team operates. The
leader of the team shall act within the limits of his or her
competence under national law.

10.
Information lawfully obtained by a member or seconded
member while part of a joint investigation team which is not
otherwise available to the competent authorities of the Member
States concerned may be used for the following purposes:

(b) The team shall carry out its operations in accordance with
the law of the Member State in which it operates. The
members of the team shall carry out their tasks under
the leadership of the person referred to in subparagraph
(a), taking into account the conditions set by their own
authorities in the agreement on setting up the team.

(c) The Member State in which the team operates shall make
the necessary organisational arrangements for it to do so.

(a)

for the purposes for which the team has been set up;

(b) subject to the prior consent of the Member State where the
information became available, for detecting,
investigating
and prosecuting other criminal offences. Such consent
may be withheld only in cases where such use would
endanger criminal
in the Member State
concerned or
in respect of which that Member State
could refuse mutual assistance;

investigations

4.
In this Framework Decision, members of the joint inves-
tigation team from Member States other than the Member State
in which the team operates are referred to as being (cid:145)seconded(cid:146)
to the team.

(c)

for preventing an immediate and serious threat to public
security, and without prejudice to subparagraph (b)
if
subsequently a criminal investigation is opened;

5.
Seconded members of the joint investigation team shall
be entitled to be present when investigative measures are taken
in the Member State of operation. However, the leader of the
team may, for particular reasons, in accordance with the law of
the Member State where the team operates, decide otherwise.

6.
Seconded members of the joint investigation team may,
in accordance with the law of the Member State where the
team operates, be entrusted by the leader of the team with
the task of taking certain investigative measures where this
has been approved by the competent authorities of
the
Member State of operation and the seconding Member State.

7. Where the joint
investigation team needs investigative
measures to be taken in one of the Member States setting up
the team, members seconded to the team by that Member State
may request their own competent authorities to take those
considered in that
measures. Those measures

shall be

(d) for other purposes to the extent that this is agreed between

Member States setting up the team.

11.
This Framework Decision shall be without prejudice to
any other existing provisions or arrangements on the setting up
or operation of joint investigation teams.

that

the laws of

To the extent

12.
the Member States
concerned or the provisions of any legal instrument applicable
between them permit, arrangements may be agreed for persons
other than representatives of the competent authorities of the
Member States setting up the joint investigation team to take
for
part
example,
include officials of bodies set up pursuant to the
Treaty. The rights conferred upon the members or seconded
members of the team by virtue of this Framework Decision
shall not apply to these persons unless the agreement expressly
states otherwise.

the team. Such persons may,

in the activities of

20.10.2001

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 295/11

Article 2

Criminal liability regarding officials

Article 4

Implementation

During the operations referred to in Article 1, officials from a
Member State other than the Member State of operation shall
be regarded as officials of the Member State of operation with
respect to offences committed against them or by them.

1. Member States shall
take the necessary measures to
comply with the provisions of this Framework Decision by
1 July 2002.

Article 3

Civil liability regarding officials

in accordance with Article 1, officials of a
1. Where,
the
Member State are operating in another Member State,
first Member State shall be liable for any damage caused by
them during their operations, in accordance with the law of
the Member State in whose territory they are operating.

2.
The Member State in whose territory the damage referred
to in paragraph 1 was caused shall make good such damage
under the conditions applicable to damage caused by its own
officials.

3.
The Member State whose officials have caused damage to
any person in the territory of another Member State shall
reimburse the latter in full any sums it has paid to the
victims or persons entitled on their behalf.

4. Without prejudice to the exercise of its rights vis-(cid:224)-vis
third parties and with the exception of paragraph 3, each
in
Member State shall
paragraph 1,
from requesting reimbursement of damages it
has sustained from another Member State.

in the case provided for

refrain,

2. Member States shall transmit to the General Secretariat of
the Council and the Commission the text of any provisions
transposing into their national
law the obligations imposed
on them under this Framework Decision. On the basis of
this and other information, the Commission shall, by 1 July
2004, submit a report to the Council on the operation of this
Framework Decision. The Council shall assess the extent to
which
this
Framework Decision.

complied with

the Member

States

have

Article 5

Entry into force

This Framework Decision shall enter into force on the date of
its publication in the Official
the European
Communities. It shall cease to have effect when the Convention
on Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters between Member
States of the European Union has entered into force in all
Member States.

Journal of

Done at . . .

For the Council

The President

. . .