EU Criminal Justice Actors: Accountability and Judicial Review Vis-À-Vis the EU Citizen

Abstract

The Area of Freedom, Security and Justice (AFSJ) represents both a constitutional objective and a solemn commitment of the Union towards its citizens. Being the AFSJ a domain of shared competence, many different actors are entrusted and responsible for the fulfilment of this commitment. After the entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty, EU citizenship became a central reference point for allocating shared responsibility and regulating the multilevel and multifarious interactions between the different legislative and enforcement actors involved in the development of this sensitive EU policy domain. Accordingly, this contribution will explore and provide a critical account on the potential of the “fundamental status” with regard to the democratic accountability of the legislative process under Title V TFEU, the parliamentary scrutiny over the AFSJ criminal justice agencies and the judicial protection of citizens' rights against the acts of these AFSJ enforcement actors.