Mutual legal assistance on criminal matters: when theory meets practice - a real story

The instruments of cooperation between different judicial authorities are well known among European judges and prosecutors, and knowledge regarding how they operate has been widely spread via courses and seminars. However, experience shows that judges and prosecutors are reluctant to use them given the practical problems they often entail. The solutions to such problems are not found in the texts of Directives or Conventions, and therefore often, investigating authorities do not know how to proceed in order to be able to conclude an investigation and/or start a trial. This article, by recounting a real experience, illustrates some of the obstacles which are so alien to legislators, and proposes solutions and/or alternatives to speed up requests for assistance.