JITs Network

In accordance with Council Document 11037/05, the Network of National Experts on Joint Investigation Teams (the JITs Network) was established in 2005 to facilitate the work of practitioners, as well as to encourage the use of JITs and contribute to the sharing of experience and best practice in using this tool.

Since 2005, the JITs Network Secretariat has organised annual meetings of the JITs Network with support from Eurojust and Europol. The meetings provide a forum for JIT practitioners from the Member States and relevant EU institutions to share experience and challenges and propose solutions from a practitioner’s point of view.

Eurojust promotes and supports the activities of the JITs Network by providing practical and logistical support, including hosting the annual meetings of the JITs Network at its premises in The Hague, as well as hosting the Secretariat.

The JIT evaluation form (update 16/2/2021) facilitates the gathering and sharing of information on JITs operations. The form is one of the deliverables of the JIT Evaluation Project.

Composition

Each Member State appoints one or more national experts to the Network, which represents the judicial (prosecutors, judges, Ministries of Justice) and law enforcement (police officers, Ministries of Interior) dimensions of a JIT. At a national level, the experts act as ‘contact points’ whom practitioners wishing to set up a JIT can address. As members of the Network, they have expertise in the functioning of JITs in their country and have access to information concerning the practicalities of JITs with other Member States. Institutional bodies such as Eurojust, Europol, OLAF, the European Commission and the Council of the EU have also appointed contact points to the JITs Network.

JITs GuidelinesFor further information, please consult the Guidelines on the Network of National Experts on Joint Investigation Teams »

With the aim of improving the overall level of engagement and functioning of the JITs Network, it was proposed during the working group meeting in 2021 to conduct an assessment of the JITs Network activities to allow for a better insight into JIT National Experts’ experience, fields of expertise and expectations relating to their role and tasks. 

The result of this decision is the adoption of the Assessment report of the JITs Network and its activities and the action plan for its future goals. The assessment dealt with various areas relevant to the functioning of the JITs Network, such as: the functioning of a JIT National Expert within their Member State; relations and cooperation with Eurojust; the JITs Network Secretariat and JITs Network activities and projects; JITs Network meetings; JITs Network awareness; the training of JIT National Experts and use of the JITs Restricted Area. The action plan gathers proposals made by the JIT National Experts for the future activities of the JITs Network.



To contact your JIT National Expert(s), please check available domestic channels (intranets, etc.). If you cannot find the necessary information, please email the Network Secretariat at jitsnetworksecretariat@eurojust.europa.eu.

The Network Secretariat

Hosted by Eurojust since 2011, the JITs Network Secretariat supports, promotes and stimulates the activities of the JITs Network. Since July 2013, the JITs Network Secretariat is also in charge of the management of Eurojust’s JITs funding programme. The Secretariat makes a significant contribution to many activities of the Network, including JIT training activities conducted – inside and outside the EU – in partnership with the EU Agency for Law Enforcement Training (CEPOL), the Academy of European Law (ERA) and the European Judicial Training Network (EJTN).

Support offered by the Network

The JITs Network and its Secretariat, with support from Eurojust and Europol, have developed a wide range of tools to encourage the use of JITs, facilitate their setting up, and contribute to the sharing of experience and best practice. A complete overview of the most relevant tools and resources for practitioners working in a joint investigation team or planning to set up a JIT, can be found in the “Tools and Resources for JIT Practitioners” document.

Available resources include:

  • JIT model agreement, developed to facilitate the setting up of JITs. Appendix I to the model agreement was revised in 2022. The consolidated document is available in all official EU languages and can be downloaded in editable Word and PDF formats;
  • revised version of the JITs Practical Guide (December 2021) – English;
  • previous version of the JITs Practical Guide (March 2017) - all official EU languages;
  • JITs Restricted Area: a centre of knowledge, providing useful practical and legal information, as well as data and documents on the setting up and running of JITs. The JITs Restricted Area also offers access to the list of contact details of JIT National Experts and Contact Points, and to the Fiches Espagnoles (national legislation on JITs). The JITs Restricted Area is the main point of reference for JIT practitioners in the EU Member States and beyond. Access to this website is restricted. Please submit a request for access via this page.
  • a JIT evaluation form (available here) to facilitate the gathering and sharing of information on JITs operations. The form is one of the deliverables of the JIT Evaluation Project.

The objectives of the JIT Evaluation Project are:

  • to enhance and improve the use and functioning of JITs in the Member States;
  • to create a ‘bank of knowledge’ on JITs through the systematic and centralised collection of evaluation data; and
  • to provide feedback on JITs to relevant actors and stakeholders.

Four JITs evaluation reports have been issued so far, with the fourth issue focusing on multilateral JITs in terms of les­sons learned and best practices identified as provided through feedback obtained from JIT practitioners active in this field; alongside Eurojust’ s experiences with multilateral JITs, recent development in JITs, and JITs-related case law. In addition, a dedicated checklist has been cre­ated which provides an overview of the aspects to be taken into account in the setting-up and operational phases of a multilateral JIT. The checklist is available in all official EU languages

The Secretariat makes a significant contribution to promoting JITs between practitioners by continuously sharing knowledge (for example during coordination meetings and seminars) and providing training activities to judiciary and law enforcement authorities within and outside the European Union, including in partnership with the EU Agency for Law Enforcement Training (CEPOL) and the European Judicial Training Network (EJTN).

Meetings of the Network

Since 2005, the meetings of the National Experts on Joint Investigation Teams have been held annually with the support of Eurojust and Europol.

The meetings provide a forum for the JIT practitioners from the Member States and institutions to share experience and challenges encountered in the use of JITs, with a view to improving the tool. Conclusions of these meetings are available below:

Conclusions of the 1st Meeting | 2nd Meeting | 3rd Meeting | 4th Meeting | 5th Meeting | 6th Meeting
7th Meeting | 8th Meeting | 9th Meeting | 10th Meeting | 11th Meeting | 12th Meeting | 13th Meeting
14th Meeting | 15th Meeting | 16th Meeting | 17th Meeting | 18th Meeting | 19th Meeting | 20th Meeting