Fiches Belges: Croacia

Is this measure possible in your Member State under International Judicial Cooperation?

Search of a person shall include a search of clothes, footwear, body surface, movable property carried by the person or which are in his/her possession, premises where the person is found at the time of the search-except home and means of transportation which is used at the time of the search. A search of a person shall be carried out by a person of the same sex, unless this is not possible due to circumstances of the search conduct. The circumstances due to which a search of a person has been carried out by a person of opposite sex must be entered into the record of search. When searching a person, the body of the searched person shall not be penetrated nor shall artificial body parts or artificial organs attached to the body (artificial limbs, etc.) be taken off. The search of a person must be carried out in a manner as to preserve the dignity of the searched person.

International legal framework applicable for this measure in your Member State

European Convention on Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters is a 1959

* receive the request/decision for judicial cooperation

Ministry of Justice

* execute/recognise the measure (if other than the receiving authority)

Comptent County courts

Accepted languages for the request/decision

Letters rogatory for mutual assistance and annexed documents shall be accompanied by a translation into the Croatian language or, if not possible, into the English language.

Deadlines for the execution of the request/decision (where applicable)

N/A

a. Special requirements

When affording mutual legal assistance, domestic judicial authority shall comply with the formalities and procedures expressly indicated in the request as necessary pursuant to the law of the requesting state, unless provided otherwise by an international treaty and provided that such formalities and procedures are not contrary to the principles of the domestic legal order.

b. Other useful information

Upon explicit request of a foreign judicial authority, the domestic judicial authority may allow presence of a foreign official during the execution of the request for mutual legal assistance.A request shall not be refused if this would likely avoid the need for supplementary requests for assistance.  Additonally - see Article 240 - 251 of the Criminal Procedural Code