US/UK extradition procedures leave few get-out clauses for white collar criminals, says Ana Stanic
Norris v Government of the US [2007] EWHC 71 (Admin), [2007] All ER (D) 199 (Jan) is only the second instance in which the Divisional Court has confirmed that a British national should be extradited for white collar crimes pursuant to the controversial US/UK Treaty of Extradition 2003 (the Treaty) and the Extradition Act 2003 (EA 2003).
The first time such extradition proceedings were brought under the Treaty and EA 2003 was in respect of the three NatWest bankers in the high-profile Enron-related case. That case confirmed that the Treaty and EA 2003’s removal of the requirement to establish a prima facie case for extradition from the UK to the US does not breach the provisions of the European Convention on Human Rights (the Convention).
In Norris the High Court addressed the following issues:
(i) Is a conspiracy to price-fix a crime under English law and, in particular, a conspiracy to defraud?
(ii) Does a person need to be capable of being charged of the same offence in England and the
