Criminal Justice (International Co-operation) (Bailiwick of Guernsey) Law, 2001 (Consolidated)

Summary

This is the consolidated text of Guernsey's principal statute governing international cooperation in criminal matters, including cross border service of process, obtaining and giving evidence overseas, prisoner transfers for investigations, search and seizure in aid of overseas investigations, and enforcement of overseas forfeiture orders. It underpins mutual legal assistance requests handled by Her Majesty's Procureur and the Bailiwick courts, and is relevant to AML/CFT because it is the mechanism used to compel production of evidence (including financial records) in response to overseas criminal investigations.

• Service of process: Allows overseas criminal summonses or court decisions to be served in the Bailiwick, and Bailiwick process to be served overseas, without imposing a domestic obligation to comply unless subsequently served locally.
• Evidence for use in the Bailiwick or overseas: Her Majesty's Procureur or, on application, the Bailiff may issue letters of request seeking evidence from overseas; conversely, overseas authorities can request evidence located in the Bailiwick, which the Procureur may obtain via a production notice or court request.
• Production notices: A person given a production notice must supply specified documents or articles to Her Majesty's Procureur by the date stated in the notice, subject to limited privileges (eg evidence prejudicial to Bailiwick security, or protected as an officer/servant of the Crown).
• Offences: It is an offence, without reasonable excuse, to fail to comply with a production notice; to make a false or misleading statement in purported compliance; or to falsify, conceal or destroy evidence known or suspected to be relevant to an actual or likely production notice.
• Live testimony: Sets out procedures for witnesses in the Bailiwick to give evidence in overseas criminal proceedings by television link or telephone, including safeguards, privilege from compulsion, and treatment for contempt and perjury purposes.
• Prisoner transfers and forfeiture: Provides for transferring Bailiwick or overseas prisoners to assist investigations, for search warrants relevant to overseas investigations, and for enforcement of overseas forfeiture orders in the Bailiwick.
• Protection from liability: Protects the Crown, the Procureur and others acting under specified information sharing or cooperation laws (listed in Schedule 3, including AML/CFT and sanctions related laws) from liability for damages, costs or consequential loss arising from good faith actions.

The Law itself does not create standing periodic filing or reporting duties for licensed financial services businesses; its obligations arise on a case by case basis when a person, business or witness is directly served with a notice, order, letter of request or summons under the Law.

Key obligations

• A person served with a production notice under section 4 must, without reasonable excuse, provide the specified documents or other articles to Her Majesty's Procureur by the date stated in the notice.
• A person must not make a false statement, or recklessly make a statement that is false or misleading in a material particular, when purporting to comply with a production notice.
• A person who knows or suspects a production notice has been or is likely to be issued must not falsify, conceal, destroy or dispose of (or cause/permit disposal of) evidence relevant to that notice.
• A person subject to a data preservation order (section 4C) must not make unauthorised disclosure of that order.
• A designated person directed to personally serve overseas process in the Bailiwick must, after service, inform Her Majesty's Procureur when service occurred (or report inability to serve and the reason).

Applies to

persons served with overseas criminal process or evidence requests in the Bailiwick, persons or businesses holding documents or articles subject to a production notice, witnesses summoned to give evidence overseas or by television link/telephone, prisoners in the Bailiwick or overseas subject to transfer requests, Her Majesty's Procureur and the Bailiwick courts

Deadlines

• date specified in the notice: A person given a production notice under section 4 must give the specified documents or articles to Her Majesty's Procureur by the date stated in that notice.