Op-Ed: “The Grand Chamber Paves the Way for the Surrender of the Catalan Leaders: The Belgian Courts’ Rejection of the European Arrest Warrant Is Incompatible with the EAW Framework Decision and the Principle of Mutual Trust (Puig and Others, C-158/21)” by David Pérez de Lamo

On 31 January 2023, the Grand Chamber of the Court of Justice concluded that the rejection by Belgian Courts of the execution of the European Arrest Warrant (‘EAW’) issued by the Spanish Supreme Court (‘SSC’) against the leaders of the Catalan independence movement  residing in Belgium  is incompatible with several provisions of the EAW Framework Decision 2002/584/JHA (‘EAW FD’), as well as the principles of mutual trust and loyal cooperation (C-158/21). The Grand Chamber thus largely followed the Opinion of AG de la Tour of 14 July 2022 (see L. Mancano, EULL 2022, ‘They will see us waiving from such great heights? The required threshold for non-execution of a European Arrest Warrant and the absence of systemic deficiencies’).

The