ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the impact of the entry into force of the Treaty of Lisbon on human rights protection in the context of European integration in criminal matters. It analyses the impact of the constitutionalization of the Charter of Fundamental Rights on EU criminal law, and explains the application of the principle of mutual recognition in the field of criminal justice. Fundamental rights as guaranteed by the ECHR and as they result from the constitutional traditions common to the Member States constitute general principles of the Union’s law. A key testing ground for the relationship between EU criminal law and the protection of human rights has been the application of the principle of mutual recognition in criminal matters. A central feature of the development of EU criminal law after Lisbon is the emphasis on the monitoring of the implementation of Member States’ commitments in the field.
