Dubbel straffbarhet- En undersökning om kravet på dubbel straffbarhet och dess förenlighet med grundläggande EU-rättsliga principer

Sammanfattning: The Swedish jurisdiction is limited by a requirement of double criminality. This general requirement was introduced in 1972 and was associated with the 1970 European Criminal Convention. The Swedish Criminal Code, chapter 2 2§ second paragraph, it states explicitly that a criminal action committed abroad can not be convicted under Swedish law if the act is free from liability under the law on the offenders resort, or if it was committed within an area not belonging to any state and where a more severe penalty than fines can not follow the offense according to Swedish law. Furthermore, chapter 2 2§ third paragraph of the Criminal Code states that the Swedish court may not impose a penalty that is higher than the maximum penalty on the offenders resort. This requirement implies that the Swedish court only can sentence for a crime committed abroad if the deed is criminalized there as well. Double criminality applies within the European international cooperation in criminal matters, but has over the recent years loosened up more and more. The development within the EU has meant that the requirement is limited and in some cases eliminated entirely. Not only has the requirement in some cases abolished, the exceptions has also been questioned in connection with the principle of legality and the principle of mutual recognition. The development has been criticized, and this paper is to investigate how the development of the dual criminality requirement was created and also its compatibility with the general basic principles such as the principle of legality and the principle of mutual recognition.