Courts / Ireland / Report

Supreme Court refers case of Dutch crime boss to CJEU

Summary

The Supreme Court has referred a legal issue to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) in an appeal brought by Naoufal Fassih, a Dutch national currently serving an 18-year prison sentence in the Netherlands for convictions including attempted murder. Fassih was extradited from Ireland to the Netherlands in 2017 under a European Arrest Warrant (EAW) issued by Amsterdam public prosecutors. He is challenging a request by Dutch authorities for Irish consent to his further prosecution on charges not included in the original EAW. The Minister for Justice opposes this action. The High Court and Court of Appeal previously ruled that Fassih could not raise this argument, as the legal issue was deemed decided in the prior surrender order. In a unanimous decision, the five-judge Supreme Court, led by Ms Justice O'Malley, determined that the complex relationship between the surrender order and subsequent consent requests involves autonomous EU law concepts requiring CJEU clarification. The Court asked whether a final surrender decision determines further consent requests and if national procedural rules preventing reliance on post-surrender CJEU judgments breach EU effectiveness principles. The Supreme Court also proposed an expedited hearing. The matter was adjourned pending the CJEU's determination.

Who, what, where, when and why

What: Report matter: Supreme Court refers case of Dutch crime boss to CJEU. Procedural stage: appeal

When:

• 2022-02-18 Publication

Why: Both the Irish High Court and the Court of Appeal ruled that Fassih's lawyer is prevented from making that argument because the Irish courts had previously made an order for his surrender where the legal issue raised has already been decided. CNI source report

Case subjects

Places mentioned

Topics

Stage Appeal Violent Crime

Read the original CNI report