Central Authority
Definition
The government body designated under an MLAT or domestic law to send and receive formal mutual legal assistance requests. In the US this is the Department of Justice Office of International Affairs; in the UK it is the Home Office; in India it is the Ministry of Home Affairs (via the nodal agency for the specific treaty).
- Function
- Sends and receives formal MLAT requests
- US authority
- DOJ Office of International Affairs
- UK authority
- Home Office
- India authority
- Ministry of Home Affairs
- Legal basis
- MLAT or domestic implementing law
Common questions
Why can't an investigator send an evidence request directly to a foreign service provider or government?+
Cross-border evidence requests generally must pass through the requesting country's designated central authority to the receiving country's central authority, so that the request meets the treaty's formal and legal requirements before any data changes hands.
Does using the central authority process guarantee a fast response?+
No, MLAT requests routed through central authorities are often slow, sometimes taking many months, because each request is reviewed for legal sufficiency by two governments in sequence rather than acted on directly.
Related terms
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- Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty (MLAT)
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