Kolev and Others (Power of a higher court to impose an injunction relating to the detailed rules for implementation - Judgment) [2020] EUECJ C-704/18 (12 February 2020)

Kolev and Others (Power of a higher court to impose an injunction relating to the detailed rules for implementation - Judgment) [2020] EUECJ C-704/18 (12 February 2020)

Article 267 TFEU does not preclude national procedural law obliging a court to comply with an injunction from a higher court to refer a case back to the prosecutor after termination of the trial phase for remedying procedural irregularities, provided that the rights under Article 6(3) and Article 7(3) of Directive 2012/13/EU are respected in the pre-trial or subsequent trial phase.

Citation
[2020] EUECJ C-704/18
Parties
Accused Persons: Mr Nikolay Kolev and others; Referring Court: Spetsializiran nakazatelen sad (Specialised Criminal Court, Bulgaria); Prosecutor: Bulgarian prosecutor
Jurisdiction
European Union
Judgment Date
12 February 2020
Procedural Posture
Preliminary Ruling / Post Trial Phase Termination, Referral to Prosecutor
Outcome
Preliminary ruling issued; national procedural law not precluded by Article 267 TFEU under specified conditions.
Legal Topics
Right to Information in Criminal Proceedings, Right of Access to Case Materials, Effect of Preliminary Rulings, Procedural Autonomy, Principle of Effectiveness, Principle of Equivalence
Criminal Law EU Law Procedural Law Right to Information in Criminal Proceedings Right of Access to Case Materials Effect of Preliminary Rulings Procedural Autonomy Principle of Effectiveness +1 more

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Parties

Mr Nikolay Kolev and others

Accused Persons

Spetsializiran nakazatelen sad (Specialised Criminal Court, Bulgaria)

Referring Court

Bulgarian prosecutor

Prosecutor

Procedural Posture

Preliminary Ruling / Post Trial Phase Termination, Referral to Prosecutor

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether Article 267 TFEU precludes national procedural law obliging a court to comply with an injunction to refer a case back to the prosecutor after termination of the trial phase for remedying procedural irregularities
  2. 2 Scope and implementation of rights under Article 6(3) and Article 7(3) of Directive 2012/13/EU

Ratio Decidendi

Article 267 TFEU does not preclude national procedural law obliging a court to comply with an injunction from a higher court to refer a case back to the prosecutor after termination of the trial phase for remedying procedural irregularities, provided that the rights under Article 6(3) and Article 7(3) of Directive 2012/13/EU are respected in the pre-trial or subsequent trial phase.

Court Disposition

Preliminary ruling issued; national procedural law not precluded by Article 267 TFEU under specified conditions.

Orders

  • Referring court must comply with injunction to refer case back to prosecutor after trial phase termination, provided EU law rights are respected.
  • Decision on costs is a matter for the national court.