The Rule of Law in Hungary and its impact on future extradition cases

The European Commission has just launched the rule of law disciplinary procedure against Hungary.

Budapest is now to receive the letter of formal notification, which starts the conditionality mechanism to prevent the Hungarian government from misusing EU funds. Hungary is the first country to face proceedings under the new mechanism, which could deprive the Hungarian government of more than EUR 40 billion of EU payments.

The Rule of Law in Hungary

Democracy, human rights and the rule of law constitute the interlocking parts of the constitutional structure of every democratic society. Recent years have witnessed the Hungarian government taking steps to gradually undermine the primacy of EU law and introduce systemic deficiencies in its legal system.

On a long list of concerns regarding the state of EU values in Hungary, the Hungarian government took steps to silence critical voices from the academics, NGOs and the media, and severely restricted the freedoms of migrants as well as gay people.

Although the mechanism was created with an intention to protect the EU from fraud against the EU budget, rather than the rule of law violations, the proceedings can and, most likely, will still have serious juridical ramifications.

A complaint from the Hungarian government about the mechanism was dismissed by the European Court of Justice on 16 February this year. The Court rejected the case entirely, confirming that Member States of the European Union can be deprived of EU funds when they fail to meet democratic standards.

The Court found that compliance by member states on the common values on which the EU is founded “define the very identity of the European Union as a legal order”.

“Since that compliance is a condition for the enjoyment of all the rights deriving from the application of the Treaties to a Member State, the European Union must be able to defend those values, within the limits of its powers.”

“Compliance with those values cannot be reduced to an obligation which a candidate state must meet in order to accede to the European Union and which it may disregard after accession.”

How can the Rule of Law affect my extradition case to Hungary?

Problems with the rule of law in Hungary do not automatically mean that the English courts will accede to the suspension of extraditions to that country. It does, however, present a further escalation of the political and legal battle.

It could be argued that the Hungarian courts should no longer be perceived as independent and, if an individual is accused of committing a crime in Hungary, that there are grounds for believing that this individual would not receive a fair trial following their extradition.

Should the English court find that an individual cannot be extradited because they have no chance of a fair trial in Hungary, this could have quite far-reaching implications, and would undoubtedly lead to similar cases arising domestically.

How can Gherson help?

Extradition is a complex area of law and it is crucial that anyone who is the target of an extradition request seeks specialist advice as soon as possible.

Our highly skilled and experienced extradition lawyers can advise you in relation to all possible defences to an extradition request from Hungary. The team has unparalleled experience in handling complex cases involving politically motivated charges and the rule of law.

If you have any queries relating to the blogs published, or are interested in talking to us about your specific circumstances, Please do not hesitate to contact us for advice, send us an e-mail, or, alternatively, follow us on Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn to stay-up-to-date.

The information in this blog is for general information purposes only and does not purport to be comprehensive or to provide legal advice. Whilst every effort is made to ensure the information and law is current as of the date of publication it should be stressed that, due to the passage of time, this does not necessarily reflect the present legal position. Gherson accepts no responsibility for loss which may arise from accessing or reliance on information contained in this blog. For formal advice on the current law please do not hesitate to contact Gherson. Legal advice is only provided pursuant to a written agreement, identified as such, and signed by the client and by or on behalf of Gherson.

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