The General Public Prosecutor's Office in Extradition Proceedings

Position in the proceedings

The General Public Prosecutor's Office (Generalstaatsanwaltschaft, GStA) at the competent Higher Regional Court (Oberlandesgericht, OLG) is, in Germany, the central granting authority in extradition proceedings. Following the OLG's judicial admissibility decision, it conducts the granting procedure and decides — on the basis of the admissibility decision and with the involvement of the Federal Ministry of Justice (Bundesministerium der Justiz, BMJ) — on the actual surrender of the requested person.

Tasks of the GStA

The GStA files the application for the issuance of the extradition arrest warrant with the OLG, submits the extradition documents to the OLG, conducts the correspondence with the foreign authorities and the BMJ, examines questions of discretion in the granting procedure, and ultimately carries out the surrender. It is the point of contact for the defense lawyer on all formal matters of the proceedings.

Discretion in the granting procedure

Even where the OLG declares the extradition legally admissible, the GStA — and ultimately the BMJ — retains a margin of discretion in the granting procedure. Humanitarian considerations, political considerations, or the requested person's particular personal circumstances may be raised here. A grant may be suspended or refused even where the OLG has found the extradition admissible.

Remedies

No formal remedy is provided against the GStA's decision to grant the extradition. Objections must be raised within the granting procedure or by way of a constitutional complaint to the Federal Constitutional Court (Bundesverfassungsgericht, BVerfG).

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