The Procedural Safeguards Working Group is pleased to present the ECBA´s initiative called “Agenda 2020: A new Roadmap on minimum standards of certain procedural safeguards“(Roadmap 2020). Click here for the document.

The Roadmap 2020 follows the successful project of the “Roadmap for strengthening procedural rights of suspected or accused persons in criminal proceedings adopted by EU Member States in 2009” (Roadmap 2009), which resulted in number of EU directives covering the rights of suspects and accused persons in criminal proceedings such as the right to interpretation and translation,  the right to information, the right of access to a lawyer and to communication while deprived of liberty, legal aid and procedural safeguards for children. 

Further procedural safeguards in criminal proceedings are not yet on the EU political agenda. Therefore, the Roadmap 2020 promotes seven additional procedural safeguards to be adopted as EU legislation. These safeguards have been proposed having reflected on thepractical experiences of the ECBA´s members, being defence lawyers based throughout all EU member states and the Council of Europe countries.           

The list consists of following procedural safeguards:

• Measure A: (Pre-Trial) Detention and European Arrest Warrant
• Measure B: Certain Procedural Rights in Trials
• Measure C: Witnesses’ Rights and Confiscatory Bans
• Measure D: Admissibility and Exclusion of Evidence and other Evidentiary Issues
• Measure E: Conflicts of Jurisdiction and ne bis in idem
• Measure F: Remedies and Appeal
• Measure G: Compensation 

The ECBA believes there is a strong need for action in order to strengthen the legal principle of mutual recognition and its underlying component - mutual trust, as well as to approximate legal frameworks across the EU member states and the cooperation between them.

If you are interested in joining the working group or simply want to discuss, please contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.