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No. 5 (2025)

Artykuły

The European Public Prosecutor’s Office project as an expression of the concept of multi-speed Europe within the framework of (diversified) enhanced cooperation

  • Krystyna Warylewska-Kamuś
DOI: https://doi.org/10.54383/0031-0344.2025.05.4  [Google Scholar]
Published: 2025-05-26

Abstract

The aim of this article is to demonstrate how the establishment of the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) reflects the concept of a multi-speed Europe, particularly in the context of (diversified) enhanced cooperation mechanisms within the European Union. The author argues that the EPPO project, based on the regulation establishing this institution within the framework of enhanced cooperation, serves as a practical example of EU integration developing at different speeds (the so-called multi-speed Europe). The article seeks to explain why some member states decided to participate in this project, while others opted out, as well as discuss the legal and political implications for EU cohesion.

The first part of the article outlines the origins and main principles of the European Public Prosecutor’s Office, including its legal framework (the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, the EPPO Regulation, and the PIF Directive) and constitutional issues related to the transfer of competences in the field of criminal law. The next section explores the concept of enhanced cooperation in the Treaty context and explains why the EPPO was established under this particular mechanism. It also discusses the significance of the concept of a multi-speed Europe and its practical manifestations in criminal law and in the protection of the EU’s financial interests. The article includes an analysis of the challenges related to cooperation between participating and non-participating states, as well as the potential political and legal conflicts arising from this division.

In conclusion, the article highlights that while the EPPO project demonstrates the feasibility of effective action by a group of member states under the enhanced cooperation framework, it also reveals divisions within the EU, particularly in the area of criminal law. The effectiveness and legitimacy of the European Public Prosecutor’s Office will largely depend on whether other member states decide to join the project in the future and whether potential conflicts with the constitutional norms of non-participating states can be avoided.

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