Criminal law is one of the most rapidly changing areas of EU law and integration
between Member States, and has been elevated to a central place in the European
Constitution by the Treaty of Lisbon within the dynamic area of freedom, security
and justice.1 In consequence of the extended scope and extraterritorial reach of national legal systems and technological advancements, national criminal justice
systems are becoming increasingly confronted with the dilemma where several
countries might have jurisdiction to investigate and prosecute the same or substantially
the same crime. In circumstances where several states might establish prosecutorial
jurisdiction for the same crime, or facts and circumstances pertaining to the planning
and commission of the crime, this state of aff airs possibly will bring about positive
confl icts of jurisdiction when two or more states assert criminal jurisdiction.2
Conversely negative confl icts of jurisdiction might arise when none of the states
concerned is willing to investigate and prosecute the perpetrators3 and vindicate the
rights of victims