International Extradition is the process by which one country formally requests the return of an individual located in another country. Despite common misstatements in the press, international extradition is not the same thing as deportation.

The country who would like to have the individual back is known as the requesting country and the country in which the individual is found is known as the requested country.  The individual will often be called a fugitive, even if the individual has not yet been convicted of anything; extradition can be sought if there are charges pending against the individual, if the individual has been convicted but not sentenced, or if the individual has been sentenced.

International extradition can be accomplished in a variety of ways:

1. By bilateral treaty;
2. By multilateral convention; and
3. By making the requesting country an extradition partner.

Of these three methods, the first is the most common, and the vast majority of countries have negotiated bilateral extradition treaties with the United States.  Of those which haven't, some have passed special domestic laws to make the United States an extradition partner.  (A famous example of this is Namibia, which passed a special law classifying the United States as an extradition partner so that Wesley Snipes could be extradited to stand trial for tax evasion.)

Despite their international and diplomatic implications, international extradition hearings are essentially probable cause hearings; they are not criminal trials, and the rules of evidence do not apply the same way they would in a criminal trial.  Generally, the extradition judge (a federal magistrate judge in the case of the United States) is tasked only with determining whether the evidence that has been provided makes it more likely than not that the individual should stand trial in the requesting country.  Other countries, such as Canada, will sometimes address human rights concerns in making a determination whether to extradite the individual to the United States, but analogous policy concerns are not necessarily present in the United States.

Mr. Choate can represent an individual in the United States when another country requests his or her extradition, and he can provide consultation for individuals in other countries whose extradition is sought by the United States.  When the United States is the requesting country, it is often crucial that the sought individual engage American counsel to coordinate with his local counsel about American law and policy.