The Extradition Act 2003

The Extradition Act 2003 provides for two separate systems of extradition from the UK. Essentially all countries with which the UK has extradition arrangements are designated into one of two categories.

Category 1 territories, which presently comprise of Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Gibraltar, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, The Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain and Sweden, are governed by Part 1 of the Act and make extradition requests through the European Arrest Warrant system.

All other countries with whom the UK has existing extradition arrangements with are dealt with as Category 2 territories under Part 2 of the Act. At present those territories include, Albania, Algeria, Andorra, Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Armenia, Australia, Azerbaijan, The Bahamas, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belize, Bolivia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Botswana, Brazil, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Cook Islands, Cuba, Dominica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Fiji, The Gambia, Georgia, Ghana, Grenada, Guatemala, Guyana, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Haiti, Iceland, India, Iraq, Israel, Jamaica, Kenya, Kiribati, Lesotho, Liberia, Libya, Liechtenstein, Macedonia, FYR, Malawi, Malaysia, Maldives, Mauritius, Mexico, Moldova, Monaco, Montenegro, Nauru, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Norway, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Peru, The Republic of Korea, Russian Federation, Saint Christopher and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, San Marino, Serbia, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Solomon Islands, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Swaziland, Switzerland, Tanzania, Thailand, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Turkey, Tuvalu, Uganda, Ukraine, Uruguay, The United Arab Emirates, The Unites States of America, Vanuatu, Western Samoa, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

It is also possible for ad hoc arrangements to be made between the UK and requesting territories who are not currently designated on a case by case basis. These cases will be dealt with under Part 2 of the Act.

Part 1 of The Extradition Act 2003 and the European Arrest Warrant

The European Arrest Warrant is the product of the European Framework Decision on Extradition. It aims to facilitate a rapid return of fugitives throughout Category 1 territories as listed above. The system is based upon, and is interpreted by our courts in light of, mutual respect for the legal systems in each country within the scheme. This makes resisting extradition from Category 1 territories extremely difficult. It is necessary to put forward an extremely strong case and persuasive evidence to prevent extradition to a Category 1 territory. There is no requirement for any evidence to be presented before the court here in relation to your alleged criminality in the requesting state.

Once a European Arrest Warrant is issued in the requesting state and it is suspected that the target of the warrant is in the UK will be transmitted to the Nation Crime Agency in the UK. They will certify the warrant and it will then be executable by any police or customs officer within this jurisdiction. On arrest the requested person will be taken to Westminster Magistrates Court for an initial hearing and an extradition hearing will be fixed on that date. At the extradition hearing the judge will decide whether or not there are any bars to extradition and ultimately whether the requested person should be extradited or, using the language of the Act, "surrendered" to the requesting country.

Often a compromise leading to withdrawal of the warrant can be reached with the requesting state directly but this action must be taken swiftly and pro-actively whilst effectively fighting the request on both fronts.

The Secretary of State has been almost entirely removed from the extradition process in relation to the European Arrest Warrant scheme, the final decision rests with the court. Gherson are able to provide a fully bespoke service in relation to Part 1 cases. Due to the speed at which the system operates it is crucial to obtain effective representation as soon as possible.

Part 2 of The Extradition Act 2003

Under Part 2 of the Act an extradition request is made to the Secretary of State. Subject to the validity of this request a certificate is issued and the request is forwarded to Westminster Magistrates' Court. After the arrest of the requested person there will be a preliminary hearing at which a date for the extradition hearing will be set. At the extradition hearing in a Part 2 case the judge will decide whether or not there are any bars to extradition and ultimately decides whether or not the case should be sent to the Secretary of State for a decision. Whilst the judge may discharge a requested person the final decision to extradite is left for the Secretary of State. Representations can be made to the Secretary of State on behalf of the requested person.

As with Part 1 cases it may be possible to compromise a warrant in the requesting state but again this action must be taken swiftly as the process will not stall in order for this to take place. It must happen concurrently with proceedings in this jurisdiction.

Requests under Part 2 of the Act generally take longer than those under Part 1 but they are also intended to be progressed as rapidly as possible. Certain countries are required to provide evidence of your criminality before extradition can be ordered but for many countries this requirement has been removed. The Secretary of State retains a role in Part 2 cases but this has been reduced. 

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