Extradition to the Philippines — Consent Revoked by Court of Appeal

Our client had initially consented to extradition to the Philippines in connection with a murder allegation, but later withdrew that consent. The Rome Court of Appeal — accepting our firm's submission — revoked the declaration of consent and ordered the reopening of the full extradition proceedings.

The initial consent

Our client, represented by different counsel at the time, had initially consented to extradition to the Philippines in connection with allegations of homicide. He later contacted our firm with serious doubts about the validity of his consent — in particular, whether he had been fully informed of the consequences, of the conditions he would face in Philippine detention, and of the legal defences available to him under Italian extradition law.

Revocation of consent

We filed an application before the Rome Court of Appeal arguing that our client's consent had been given without adequate information and that, in any event, Italian law permitted him to withdraw consent at any stage before the final extradition order. We presented evidence of the conditions in Philippine detention facilities, which fell below the minimum standards required by Article 3 ECHR, and challenged the adequacy of the fair trial guarantees he would receive in the Philippines.

Consent to extradition is not irrevocable. If the defendant did not fully understand the consequences — or if new information emerges about the destination country's detention conditions or judicial system — the consent can and must be revisited.

Outcome

The Rome Court of Appeal revoked the consent declaration and ordered the reopening of the extradition proceedings. Our client now faces a full adversarial extradition procedure with all available defences open to him.