The article reflects on the future of financial criminal law investigations of the EU. It departs from the experts’ studies conducted which have developed the Corpus Juris Model, and recalls the historic development of the subsequent institutional debate up to the Lisbon Reform Treaty. The reform on OLAF’s functional independence and accountability is put into the context of a possible work plan to complete the reflections. Ultimately, the author outlines a way ahead, which possibly enables financial criminal investigations of the EU to be conducted under the lead of a European Public Prosecutor’s Office.

The adoption of the regulation establishing the European Public Prosecutor's Office is a decisive step in the completion of the institutional settings for the protection of the EU’s financial interests. This article looks back at the origins of the project and recalls its underlying rationale. It further critically analyses the legislative procedure, studies the contents of the compromise reached, and provides insight into the requirements for efficient operation of the EPPO in cooperation with its partners. By way of concluding remarks, three perspectives are outlined that require further analysis and closer scrutiny, i.e.:
- Efforts in common training schemes;
- Need for criminal investigation and enforcement support;
- Reflections on the merger of the EPPO and Eurojust

This article gives an account of the negotiations of the Commission proposal for the Directive
on the fight against fraud to the Union's financial interests by means of criminal law ("PIF Directive"). It also outlines the key elements of the finally adopted legal instrument as well as its significance for the European Public Prosecutor’s Office. The article concludes that the comprehensive approach followed by the EU in fighting crime against the Union budget will lead to tangible results and a significantly better protection of the financial interests of the European Union.

I. Introduction On 20 November 2017, twenty days after its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union, Regulation 1939/2017 establishing the European Public Prosecutor’s Office – commonly referred to as the EPPO – entered into force. It is the most advanced stage in the creation of a common criminal justice area in the EU, as the EPPO is a true prosecutor’s office for conducting criminal investigations. It is – from the outset – not a coordination office, like Eurojust, and it is not an office for administrative investigations, like OLAF, but indeed a criminal investigation and prosecution office.... Read more

I. Introductory Remarks Since its establishment in 1999, the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) has had the purpose of increasing the effectiveness of the fight against fraud and other illegal activities detrimental to the financial interests of the Union.1 It also has the double task of carrying out administrative investigations concerning fraud, corruption, and any other illegal activity affecting the EU’s financial interests and of acting as Commission service responsible for developing EU anti‑fraud policies. In its investigative function, OLAF has been operating under a legal framework that has evolved over time. OLAF conducts external investigations into areas of EU expenditure... Read more