#Criminal litigation and international investigation:
Murder of Samuel Paty: at the appeal trial of the jihadist’s accomplices, the charge of terrorist criminal conspiracy under scrutiny
On January 26th, 2026, the appeal trial of four individuals convicted for their involvement in the terrorist murder of Samuel Paty opened before the Cour d’assises d’appel spéciale de Paris. The defendants primarily challenge the legal characterization of criminal conspiracy for terrorist purposes, arguing that their actions, consisting of logistical assistance or acting as relays for an online hate campaign, do not demonstrate a clearly established terrorist intent. The central legal issue concerns the causal link between the dissemination of hate speech and the commission of the attack, as well as the degree of knowledge required of the perpetrator’s criminal plans. The court must clarify the scope of the intentional element in the offence of terrorist criminal conspiracy. > Read article
The Le Scouarnec case: the courts recognise a specific harm linked to serial crime for victims and provide compensation of €4,000
On January 20th, 2026, the criminal court of Morbihan, for the first time in France, recognised a “specific harm resulting from serial crime” suffered by certain civil parties in the trial of Joël Le Scouarnec, a former surgeon convicted of rape and sexual assault against nearly 300 victims. This recognition seeks to reflect the particular impact of repeated acts of violence and the extreme media exposure of the trial on the victims. As a result, the court provided for compensation of approximately €4,000 per victim for this specific harm. This decision marks a legal development in the compensation of victims of serial crimes. > Read article
#European Arrest Warrant, Extradition & Interpol:
European arrest warrant and surrender of the person in the absence of double criminality
On January 15th, 2026, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) clarified the relationship between the Framework Decision on the European Arrest Warrant (EAW) and the Framework Decision on the recognition of custodial sentences where the acts covered by the EAW do not constitute an offence in the executing State. The Court ruled that a Member State cannot convert the optional ground for non-recognition provided for in Framework Decision 2008/909 into a binding obligation, and that this ground cannot be invoked when applying the surrender guarantee set out in Article 5(3) of Framework Decision 2002/584, unless circumstances subsequently change. This ruling affirms the primacy of the principle of mutual recognition and the necessary discretion afforded to the executing authority to prevent impunity. > Read article
#Arbitration and Mediation:
Rwanda brings claim against UK over scrapped asylum plan
Rwanda has initiated inter-state arbitration proceedings against the United Kingdom following the termination of the bilateral asylum partnership concluded in December 2023. The arbitration, commenced in late November 2025 before the Permanent Court of Arbitration, is based on the dispute settlement clauses of that treaty. The partnership aimed to relocate to Rwanda migrants and asylum seekers who had entered the United Kingdom irregularly, in return for financial support from the UK. The scheme had followed a memorandum of understanding previously found unlawful by the UK Supreme Court on the grounds of the principle of non-refoulement. Following the 2024 election, the new UK government brought the scheme to an end, giving rise to the present dispute. > Read article
