EU Acts to Access Bank Accounts Under MLAT Protocol

On October 16, 2001, the Council of the European Union adopted a Protocol to the Convention on Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters between the Member States of the European Union that facilitates obtaining information on bank accounts. The Protocol will become an integral part of the Convention on Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters between the Member States of the EU of May 29, 2000. The proposed Protocol will facilitate the obtaining of information and evidence of bank accounts. The preclusion of a requested State to rely on either bank secrecy or fiscal reasons to refuse to cooperate reflects a trend. The Protocol also reflects that within a Single Market the EU is increasingly pioneering new forms of closer cooperation.