Luxembourg, 14/10/2004 (Agence Europe) - In a press release, the European Court of Justice pointed out that its Advocate General, Juliane Kokott, felt that less harsh criminal law adopted after the facts must not be applied if it runs counter to Community law. The Court recalls that Silvio Berlusconi, in his capacity as company chairman and shareholder, is prosecuted by Italian law for having falsified balance sheets before 2002, when the new Italian criminal provisions on falsification of company reports entered into effect.
The Court adds that the Member States should also foresee effective, dissuasive and proportionate penalties for the falsification of balance sheets. Non-application of a milder criminal law after the offence, also in breach of Community law, would be compatible with the principle of lawfulness of penalties, the press release states. EUROPE will come back to the conclusions strictly speaking.