A literal construction of the EC and EU Treaties suggests that their framers intended to limit the positive competences of both the Community and the Union in the field of criminal law. However, the European Court of Justice has consistently applied tests of necessity and effectiveness to develop the Community's catalogue of legislative competences and the interpretation of Community law, culminating in decisions which accord to the Community a limited criminal competence where this is deemed necessary for the effectiveness of other policy aims. This book takes stock of the development of...

This timely book provides an astute assessment of the institutional and constitutional boundaries, interactions and tensions between the different levels of governance in EU criminal justice. Probing the conceptual and theoretical underpinnings of the EU's approach to transnational crime, it proposes improved mechanisms for public participation in the governance of EU criminal law, designed to ensure better transparency, accountability and democratic controls. Influential scholars from across Europe analyse key practical challenges to the governance of EU criminal law in the context of...