A History of Double Criminality in Extradition

What is it about?

This article examines the history of the principle of double criminality in extradition, the principle that a crime is only extraditable if the conduct on which it is based is also criminal in the state where the fugitive is found. It follows the development of the law of extradition from antiquity until the mid twentieth century, showing how the principle first emerged as a requirement in an extradition provision in a treaty between the US and UK in 1794, and then spread across the globe. It also shows that as it did so it changed from a principle of a procedural kind to a more substantive principle.

Featured Image