The Ministry of Justice of Bosnia and Herzegovina is the central authority for communication with other countries in providing international legal assistance in criminal and civil matters. International legal assistance encompasses all communication between the judicial authorities of Bosnia and Herzegovina and those abroad.

• International Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters

• International legal assistance in civil matters

• International treaties and conventions

• Professional training

International Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters

International assistance in criminal matters includes:

• all actions taken by the competent authority of a foreign state at the request of the domestic competent authority and vice versa

• procedures for extradition, the transfer of convicted persons, and the transfer of criminal proceedings from one state to another

• other procedures governed by special international conventions and treaties

International legal assistance in civil matters

For the purposes of providing international legal assistance, civil matters include both family and other legal matters and relationships. In accordance with the Convention on the Enforcement of Maintenance Obligations Abroad and the Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction, the Ministry handles all communication between judicial authorities in Bosnia and Herzegovina and abroad.

International treaties and conventions

International legal assistance and cooperation are based on multilateral and bilateral international treaties that are binding on Bosnia and Herzegovina. The Ministry of Justice of Bosnia and Herzegovina conducts the full procedures for concluding international agreements in the field of international legal assistance, as well as the procedures for acceding to international conventions.

This applies in particular to:

• Matters concerning the extradition of accused and convicted persons,

• action on requests for the enforcement of foreign court decisions in criminal, civil and other matters, and

• Actions on requests for international criminal, civil and other legal assistance.

By acceding to the European Conventions in the field of criminal law (extradition, transfer of sentenced persons, transfer of criminal proceedings and international legal assistance in criminal matters), the procedure for providing international legal assistance has been significantly improved and simplified. By the Succession Agreement, Bosnia and Herzegovina assumed all international treaties in this field that were binding on the former SFR of Yugoslavia.

By selecting the link to International Conventions and Treaties, you can gain a complete overview of the review and content of bilateral international treaties and other international instruments in the field of international legal assistance that Bosnia and Herzegovina has to date signed or concluded by exchange of notes with certain states of the world, and has assumed on the basis of the Agreement on Succession.

Professional training

As the need for International Legal Assistance increases enormously year on year, the Ministry is making every effort and is professionally engaged in improving the efficiency of the entire system in this area. The Sector for International Assistance and Cooperation conducts practical training for judges and prosecutors throughout BiH. With the expert publication International Legal Assistance I and II, the training of judges and prosecutors has received the highest ratings for its contribution to improving the overall system of international legal assistance.