(21)This Decision respects the fundamental rights and observes the principles recognised by Article 6 of the Treaty on European Union and in the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, in particular Article 49 thereof. As underlined in the case-law of the Court of Justice, the principle that offences and penalties must be defined by law requires provisions of criminal law to ensure accessibility and foreseeability as regards both the definition of the offence and the determination of the penalty. In addition, the law should clearly define offences and the penalties which they attract. However, the rules in accordance with which the prosecution services investigate, prosecute and bring cases to judgment are rules of procedural nature that concern the organisation of these bodies and the relevant proceedings, and do not concern the definition of offences and penalties. They therefore fall outside the scope of Article 49 of the Charter. The relevant substantive rules of criminal law, contained in Directive (EU) 2017/1371 of the European Parliament and of the Councilnote, as transposed in Hungarian law, remain unchanged and are not affected by this Decision.
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