Translation of "perquisition ou saisie d'objets " (French → English) :

4. If the issuing authority is not a judge, a court, an investigating magistrate or a public prosecutor and the EEW has not been validated by one of those authorities in the issuing State, the executing authority may, in the specific case, decide that no search or seizure may be carried out for the purpose of the execution of the EEW.

In those circumstances, the undertakings whose premises are searched in the course of a competition investigation are able to determine their rights and obligations vis-à-vis the competent authorities and the law applicable, as, for example, the treatment of documents likely to be seized in the course of such an investigation and whether the undertakings concerned are entitled to rely on legal professional privilege in respect of communications with in-house lawyers.

41. Welcomes the conclusion of the Agreement between the European Community and its Member States, of the one part, and the Swiss Confederation, of the other part, to counter fraud ; congratulates all those, including OLAF, who were involved in drawing up the Agreement; the provisions of that Agreement cover many of the aspects dealt with in the Second Protocol to the Agreement on the protection of the Communities' financial interests, in particular those governing administrative assistance, searches, seizures, and recovery; expresses its incomprehension at the fact that this protocol, which dates from 1997, has still ...[+++] not been ratified by three of the old Member States, namely Italy, Luxembourg and Austria;

In principle, the application of this agreement is not subject to the dual criminality rule, except for judicial cooperation by means of coercive measures (search and seizure).

Each Member State must take the measures necessary to ensure that in addition to ordinary constraining measures such as search and seizure, adequate investigation powers and techniques are available to ensure that offences are investigated and prosecuted effectively, in compliance with the rights of defence and privacy of the persons subject to those measures.

Examples of such techniques are the ones used in the collection and handling of information (e.g. management of informants, surveillance, controlled deliveries, covert operations, searches and seizures), as mentioned in the Convention on Mutual Assistance and Co-operation between Customs Administrations [42] and the Convention on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters [43].