Summary

The idea to establish a European Prosecutor first emerged in 1995, when the European Commission ordered a study to assess whether the penal measures taken by the Member States ensured efficient protection of the economic interests of the Community. At the initiative of M. Delmas-Marty, the study was completed in 1997, and is known as Corpus Juris. Corpus Juris was the first to propose the European Public Prosecutor in order to combat offences against the economic interests of the European Union.

At the 2000 intergovernmental conference, held in Nice, the Commission presented the proposal to establish the European Public Prosecutor. The proposal was not approved. The Commission did not withdraw from its intention and published a Green Paper on the establishment of a European Prosecutor in 2001. The idea of Corpus Juris has been taken as the basis in its structure and functions, and a more detailed concept has been presented already.

The Treaty of Lisbon gives the green light to the establishment of the European Prosecutor. The article provides an overview of the reasons necessitating the establishment of a new criminal law institution on the Union level, and the concept of the European Public Prosecutor: the planned structure of the European Prosecutor, substantive and procedural law. The article also discusses the positions expressed by the opponents to the idea of establishing the European Prosecutor.