Dr. Bátki Pál ügyvéd
I offer criminal law services for clients speaking English or French. My office is situated in the center of Budapest, the capital of Hungary. I am proud that I often help and solve problems for citizens and companies in Europe or overseas.
My legal practice covers the main areas of criminal law and international criminal law. I have expertise in drug abuse violations, money laundering, white collar crimes, forgery and counterfeiting, fraud, financial crimes and tax fraud offenses, driving and traffic crimes.
My earlier practice in the Ministry of Justice and Law Enforcement allows me to handle international and especially international criminal law issues at a high professional level. I often cooperate with foreign colleagues in Extradition or European Arrest Warrant cases from or to Hungary.
I am referred by the the two main English speaking embassies in Hungary
as a defense counsel, lawyer proividing services for US citizens.
You can read many of my articles, posts in English below.
You can contact me and get an appointment at batki@batki.info or you can call + (36)-30-22-11-579.
It is easy to find your way to my office: it is overlooking the river Danube next to Margaret bridge on the Pest side:
I am proud that my office has become a member of the PenalNet cooperation of EU member state lawyers.
PenalNet is a European initiative toprovide a directory of registered European criminal lawyers which allows faster interaction and efficiency. Besides this PenalNet increases confidence between the professionals and amongst clients/citizens whilst protecting their right to privacy as well as professional secrecy.
I teach Inetrnational Law at International Business School (Budapest partner of Oxford Brookes University)
I am glad to report another successful extradition case in which I provided legal representation to a Ukrainian citizen with two of my fellow lawyers. Turkmenistan requested the extradition of my client from Hungary. The request for extradition The Turkmen indictment against my client was that he helped the former Turkmen deputy prime minister laundering…
Are you planning to set up a company in Hungary? Opening a business company in Hungary is not complicated. You will need a good, trustworthy and experienced lawyer who carries you through the process which takes only a few (intensive) days. With Hanna Bátki Dr. on the board we can help you in that. We…
Sanctions that you can expect in case of Drunk Driving (incl. revoking of foreign driving licence) Drunk driving is also called driving while impaired/driving while intoxicated (DWI) or driving under influence. Drunk driving (DUI) is a common crime in Hungary since Hungarian Criminal Law uses the „zero tolerance” approach. Although it is one of the mild offenses…
In my earlier posts in English I tired to give information about some aspects of Hungarian Criminal Law. Recently the Courts of Hungary (birosag.hu) published a good overview about Hungarian Crimnal Procedure which contains important and accurate details and information therefore I decided to share: The objective of criminal proceedings The objective of criminal proceedings…
Extradition denied from Hungary to Uzbekistan In one of my recent cases, I was the lawyer of an Uzbek citizen. Uzbek authorities accused him of fraud and filed an extradition request to Hungary. According to the prosecution, a company founded by the defendant signed a contract with the aggrieved party, which bound the company to…
The charge is drug-trafficing In one of my cases, which started in the summer of 2018 there has been a positive development. My client M. S., citizen of M. state apprehended during Ozora Festival, Hungary. According to the authorities, he offered to sell drugs to some policemen in disguise. He was immediately searched by the…
What is a Certificate of Good Conduct? Certificate of Good Conduct (sometimes referred to as Police Clearance Report) is an official report in Hungary stating that a person as no criminal record. It is issued on the basis of data processed in the criminal records system. It is often required in many Hungarian official procedures (the…
Legalization or Apostille in Hungary Should you use a document issued by foreign countries and/or authorities in Hungary? The documents (such as birth certificates, marriage certificates etc.) shall be apostilled or legalized. What does Apostille mean? The Apostille Convention is an international treaty. It has been drafted by the Hague Conference. It specifies the modalities through…
The text of the Hungarian Criminal Code adopted in 2012 can be found under the following link: Act C of 2012 on the Hungarian Criminal Code Hasonló bejegyzések: Hungarian Criminal Code on Procuring for Prostitution Hungarian Criminal Law and Criminal Procedure Conference on EU Criminal Law for Defence Counsel Diversion as an alternative to imprisonment…
Bail in a Drug Trafficing Case in Hungary In one of my latest cases, a non-EU country tourist was apprehended by policemen during the annual Ozora Festival. According to the authorities, he had tried to sell drugs to some disguised policemen. His belongings were searched thoroughly by the present policemen and several types of drugs…
International legal frames of the Hungarian Criminal Ruling The Hungarian Criminal Code on the offenses of Pandering and Procuring for Prostitution or Sexual Act is based on the Convention for the Suppression of theTraffic in Persons and of the Exploitation of the Prostitution of Others (Lake Success, New York, 21 March 1950) as follows: Pandering (1)…
List of Lawyers of the UK Embassy in Budapest, Hungary I proudly announce that the British Consulate awarded my service in the area of Criminal Law for UK citizens by enlisting me on their List of Lawyers in Hungary with the details below. It is a great honour for me. I will of course do my…
Hungarian Prisons According to legal definitions the Hungarian Prison Service is an armed law enforcement agency that carries out measures and sentences of imprisonment and criminal procedure enforcement measures and also executes confinements of fine defaulters. The Prison Service is subordinated to the Ministry of Interior. The Minister of Interior is responsible for the Prison…
Misuse of narcotics In 2017, I acted as a legal representative (defense counsel) in the case of a Greek citizen, who had been accused of misuse of narcotic drugs. The client admitted to consuming a minimal amount of marijuana, and because of this, an investigation procedure was initiated. Diversion as alternative of imprisonment The Hungarian…
Prostitution – call for sexual service In the following misdemeanor offence-related case, which raised some interesting questions, I was entrusted with the legal representation of an Indian citizen. He was found liable for violating the offence of prohibition of call for sexual service. The factual background of the case According to the case, a policeman…
If somebody is taken into custody by the Hungarian police, he must be brought before a judge within 72 hours who would decide in the question of ordering the pre-trial arrest for 30 days. There are other lighter forms of coercive measures (such as house arrest, home curfew or bail) You can read more about this at these…
Internet Fraud in Hungary What I do: victim’s representation Hungary and Eastern Europe has unfortunately become a centre for internet fraud (or online scams). Many foreign companies and private persons turned to me recently with different cases. These cases were different, but also similar in some ways. The common point is usually a Hungarian bank…
Designer drugs and legislation in Hungary and Europe In the past decades both legislation, law enforcement and also the press witnessed the phenomenon of the emerging of a grey market of designer drugs, or research chemicals. These chemicals are functional or structural analogues of controlled and illegal substances usually designed or prepared in clandestine laboratories.…
Subjects: EU Criminal Law, European Arrest Warrants In October, 2015 I attended a course on EU Criminal Law especially for defence counsel focused on the European Arrest Warrant. This conference was organised by the Academy of European Law. The lectures were held by legal practioners from Austria and Hungary. The subject of course was the practice…
Facts of the case In 2014 I had the opportunity to work as defense counsel in an exciting extradition case in Hungary. This case was a 100 % success, so it is pleasant for me to recall my memories about its details. A foreign citizen was caught at the Hungarian airport. There was an international warrant for his arrest issued by a…
Immigration as a special territory of Law in Hungary Immigration is complex territory of Hungarian law as immigratin itself is also a multi-faceted phenomenon. The personal scope of immigration covers investors, family unificators, temporal workers, employees of global firms and also refugees. The process of immigration to Hungary Immigration law regulates the long process from…
Regulation on Attorneys at Law In Hungary lawyers providing legal representation for their clients are called attorneys. The basic legal source about the activity of attorneys and the attorney-client relationships is the Act XI of 1998 on Attorneys at Law. Activities of Attorneys at Law in Hungary There are some services which may be provided…
Basic rules of pre-trial detention in Hungary Pre-trial detention is a coercive measure regulated by the Act on Criminal Procedures. It is clear, and many judicial decisions stress out that pre-trial detention must not function as an advance punishment. The legal reasons of ordering pre-trial punishment is the efficient conduct of the criminal procedure and…
General information Hungary’s legal system has been heavily influenced by Romano-Germanic law (continental law) therefore an important characteristic of criminal law is the comprehensive codification and the dominance of statutes as the sources of law. It can be distinguished from common law systems’ judge-made decisional law that gives primacy to prior court decisions: a previous…
We often represent heirs from all around the world who have inherited real estate or bank accounts left behind by a testator of Hungarian nationality.The legal representation usually consists of simply making the declarations necessary in the succession procedure. According to Hungarian Inheritance Law succession procedure is conducted by the competent civil law notary. Notaries act on behalf the Court of First…
Our office often cooperate with foreign attorneys in extradition and International or European Arrest Warrant cases. One of our cases had just finished successfully by the decision of a Canadian Court which had dismissed the request for extradition of Hungary. The Republic of Hungary sought the extradition of our client R. D. from Canada to face…
