Case C-724/19: Judgment of the Court (Fourth Chamber) of 16 December 2021 (request for a preliminary ruling from the Spetsializiran nakazatelen sad — Bulgaria) — Criminal proceedings against HP (Reference for a preliminary ruling — Judicial cooperation in criminal matters — European Investigation Order (EIO) — Directive 2014/41/EU — Article 2(c)(i) — Concept of ‘issuing authority’ — Article 6 — Conditions for issuing an EIO — Article 9(1) and (3) — Recognition of an EIO — EIO seeking to obtain traffic and location data associated with telecommunications, issued by a public prosecutor designated as ‘issuing authority’ by the national measure transposing Directive 2014/41 — Exclusive competence of the judge, in a similar domestic case, to order the investigative measure indicated in that order)
Date: 2021-12-16
Institutions: Court of Justice
Subjects: competence of the institution, criminal proceedings, judge, judicial cooperation in criminal matters in the EU, protection of communications, public prosecutor's department, telecommunications








C_2022084EN.01000501.xml










21.2.2022   


EN


Official Journal of the European Union


C 84/5






Judgment of the Court (Fourth Chamber) of 16 December 2021 (request for a preliminary ruling from the Spetsializiran nakazatelen sad — Bulgaria) — Criminal proceedings against HP
(Case C-724/19) (1)

(Reference for a preliminary ruling - Judicial cooperation in criminal matters - European Investigation Order (EIO) - Directive 2014/41/EU - Article 2(c)(i) - Concept of ‘issuing authority’ - Article 6 - Conditions for issuing an EIO - Article 9(1) and (3) - Recognition of an EIO - EIO seeking to obtain traffic and location data associated with telecommunications, issued by a public prosecutor designated as ‘issuing authority’ by the national measure transposing Directive 2014/41 - Exclusive competence of the judge, in a similar domestic case, to order the investigative measure indicated in that order)
(2022/C 84/05)
Language of the case: Bulgarian

Referring court

Spetsializiran nakazatelen sad

Party in the main proceedings

HP

Interested party: Spetsializirana prokuratura

Operative part of the judgment







1.


Article 2(c)(i) of Directive 2014/41/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 3 April 2014 regarding the European Investigation Order in criminal matters must be interpreted as precluding a public prosecutor from having competence to issue, during the pre-trial stage of criminal proceedings, an European Investigation Order, within the meaning of that directive, seeking to obtain traffic and location data associated with telecommunications, where, in a similar domestic case, the judge has exclusive competence to adopt an investigative measure seeking access to such data.










2.


Article 6 and Article 9(1) and (3) of Directive 2014/41 must be interpreted as meaning that recognition, on the part of the executing authority, of an European Investigation Order issued with a view to obtaining traffic and location data associated with telecommunications may not replace the requirements applicable in the issuing State, where that European Investigation Order was improperly issued by a public prosecutor, whereas, in a similar domestic case, the judge has exclusive competence to adopt an investigative measure seeking to obtain such data.






(1)  OJ C 413, 9.12.2019.