Out-of-court settlement procedures in criminal justice: advantages and risks

Motion for a resolution | Doc. 14371 | 29 June 2017

Signatories:

Mr Boriss CILEVIČS, Latvia, SOC ; Lord Donald ANDERSON, United Kingdom, SOC ; Mr Volodymyr ARIEV, Ukraine, EPP/CD ; Lord Richard BALFE, United Kingdom, EC ; Ms Eka BESELIA, Georgia, SOC ; Mr Algirdas BUTKEVIČIUS, Lithuania, SOC ; Ms Lise CHRISTOFFERSEN, Norway, SOC ; Mr Mustafa DZHEMILIEV, Ukraine, EPP/CD ; Lord George FOULKES, United Kingdom, SOC ; Mr Pierre-Alain FRIDEZ, Switzerland, SOC ; Ms Iryna GERASHCHENKO, Ukraine, EPP/CD ; Mr Valeriu GHILETCHI, Republic of Moldova, EPP/CD ; Mr Vladyslav GOLUB, Ukraine, EPP/CD ; Mr Domagoj HAJDUKOVIĆ, Croatia, SOC ; Ms Arpine HOVHANNISYAN, Armenia, EPP/CD ; Mr Giorgi KANDELAKI, Georgia, EPP/CD ; Mr Serhii KIRAL, Ukraine, EC ; Mr Eerik-Niiles KROSS, Estonia, ALDE ; Mr Pierre-Yves LE BORGN', France, SOC ; Ms Valentina LESKAJ, Albania, SOC ; Mr Andrii LOPUSHANSKYI, Ukraine, ALDE ; Mr George LOUCAIDES, Cyprus, UEL ; Ms Liliane MAURY PASQUIER, Switzerland, SOC ; Ms Marianne MIKKO, Estonia, SOC ; Mr Killion MUNYAMA, Poland, EPP/CD ; Mr Jordi ROCA, Spain, EPP/CD ; Mr Stefan SCHENNACH, Austria, SOC ; Mr Nico SCHRIJVER, Netherlands, SOC ; Mr Frank SCHWABE, Germany, SOC ; Mr Manuel TORNARE, Switzerland, SOC ; Mr Pavlo UNHURIAN, Ukraine, EPP/CD ; Mr Egidijus VAREIKIS, Lithuania, EPP/CD ; Mr Viktor VOVK, Ukraine, EC ; Mr Leonid YEMETS, Ukraine, EPP/CD ; Mr Emanuelis ZINGERIS, Lithuania, EPP/CD

This motion has not been discussed in the Assembly and commits only those who have signed it.

Out-of-court settlement procedures, in particular plea bargaining are widely used in criminal proceedings related to certain types of offences in many Council of Europe member States. As a rule, but not necessarily, it involves explicit recognition of guilt. These procedures can ensure a substantial acceleration of the criminal process and save significant resources.

Legal experts express diverse views about the efficiency of out-of-court procedures, the results of its application, and their full compliance with the “classical” principles of the rule of law. In the meantime, one could hardly claim that substantive and universally accepted international standards exist in this regard.

Therefore, the Parliamentary Assembly decides to take up a study of the application of these procedures in practice, including plea bargaining, and to analyse good practices, risks and problems, with the aim of drawing up relevant recommendations for member States.