ABSTRACT
Several major European Union (EU) treaty revisions, as well as the increased political prioritisation of counter-terrorism and combating organised crime in Europe, have led to the development of the Area of Freedom, Security and Justice (AFSJ) into one of the most dynamic fields of European integration (Kaunert et al. 2014). Within the AFSJ, cooperation in police and judicial matters has significantly developed since the late 1990s. This chapter begins by locating the development of police and judicial cooperation into the broader context of the creation and evolution of the AFSJ and its institutional aspects. The following section explores various academic approaches to the study of European police and judicial cooperation. The remainder of the chapter is devoted to examining the main actors and issues in EU police and judicial cooperation in criminal matters.
