Facts
On 16 May and 23 June 1995, the Geneva investigating judge ordered searches and seizures of documents from Zurich banking institutions in the context of a criminal investigation targeting D. On 6 December 1995, the Indictment Chamber of the Canton of Geneva dismissed D.'s appeals against these orders. D. then filed a public law appeal to the SFC, alleging a violation of Art. 355 para. 2 SCC and the primacy of federal law.Considerations
The SFC dismisses the appeal. It considers that Art. 4 of the Concordat on Judicial Assistance and Inter-Cantonal Cooperation in Criminal Matters, which allows a judicial authority to carry out procedural acts directly in another canton by applying its own procedural law, does not violate Art. 355 para. 2 SCC or the principle of the primacy of federal law.
Indeed, Arts. 352 et seq. SCC contain minimum rules aimed at facilitating the application of substantive criminal law throughout Switzerland. However, the cantons remain free, within their area of competence in criminal procedure (Art. 64bis para. 2 Cst.), to adopt rules more favorable to the uniform application of federal law. Thus, Art. 4 of the Concordat, which makes it possible to overcome the disadvantages linked to a strict application of the…