Extradition - A Matter of Trust?

Extradition procedures in the UK are very much in the news right now with Julian Assange, of Wikileaks and the US secret documents, and Shrien Dewani, whose recent bride Anni Dewani was murdered in a township, face extradition to Sweden and South Africa respectively.

The law of extradition from England and Wales (Scotland has a separate legal system and slightly different procedures) was made less complex by the Extradition Act of 2003 which was a response to the raised terrorist threat in Europe. Extradition was made much easier.

EU member states created the European Arrest Warrant and the surrender procedures are relatively straightforward although one needs to get the paperwork correct. The state requesting extradition is generally represented here by the CPS (Crown Prosecution Service) and issuing states in "category one territories" (the EU member states) often approach the CPS prior to submission of the paperwork to seek advice on the content or format of