The Court of Appeal has dismissed an appeal against an order for the surrender of Filip Brazda to the Czech Republic under a European Arrest Warrant. The appeal concerned a seven-month prison sentence imposed in default of payment of a fine for driving while disqualified.
The warrant sought Brazda’s surrender in connection with the sentence. The District Court in Louny had fined him CZK 70,000 in June 2020 and imposed a substitute seven-month term if he did not pay. In January 2021, that court ordered the prison term to be executed. It told the Irish authorities that the order had not yet entered into legal force because it had not been served on Brazda, who could appeal after service. It also said he could avert imprisonment by paying the original fine.
The High Court ordered surrender under section 10(d) of the European Arrest Warrant Act 2003, finding that a prison sentence had been imposed and that remaining steps concerned service and execution. It certified two questions of law for appeal, including whether the sentence was enforceable despite Brazda’s option to pay the fine.
Brazda argued that only the fine was currently enforceable, that the prison term might never take effect, and that the statutory requirements for surrender were not met. The Minister for Justice argued that the seven-month sentence had been imposed and that the remaining process was fixed.
The Court of Appeal held that the case also came within section 10(b), which covers a person who remains the subject of proceedings. The Czech authorities sought surrender to conclude the prosecution, and procedural steps remained before the sentence became operative. The court said the offence met the minimum gravity threshold for a prosecution warrant because it carried a maximum possible sentence of two years; that threshold was not determined by the seven-month sentence imposed in this case.
The court also agreed with the High Court that the default sentence was enforceable for the purposes of section 10(d) and the Framework Decision. It said the remaining steps were procedural and automatic unless Brazda chose to pay the fine. It answered both certified questions yes, declined to refer the matter to the Court of Justice of the European Union, and dismissed the appeal. The decision addresses the legal basis for surrender; it does not state that Brazda was surrendered or that he served the sentence.