Court of Justice of the Court of Justice of the European Union European Union

Jurisdiction,

Composition and Procedures

(The various types of proceedings)

Mission of the CJEU

Judicial institution of the European Union

• reviews the legality of the acts of the institutions of the EU;

• ensures that the MS comply with obligations under the Treaties;

• interprets EU law at the request of the national courts and tribunals;

• cooperates with the courts and tribunals of the MS - ensures the uniform application and interpretation of EU law;

Composition of CJEU

The Court of Justice of the European Union consists of three courts:

• Court of Justice 27 judges (one from each MS) and 8 Advocates-General

• General Court 27 judges (no permanent AG)

• Civil Service Tribunal7 judges

Multilingualism

• 23 official languages of the EU• The Court is required to observe the principle

of multilingualism in full, because of the need to communicate with the parties in the language of the proceedings and to ensure that its case-law is disseminated throughout the MS

Definition of the great principles of EU law

Judgements

• Through its case-law the Court has established some of the principles in which EU law and the EU itself is based upon

• The Court has defined the «rules» governing the relationship between EU law and national law (domestic law of the MS)

The main principles

• Direct Effect

• Direct Applicability

• Primacy

Direct effect - Criteria

• Case Van Gend en Loos (1963).• Direct Effect - criteria:

• The provision must be ‘self-executing’, i.e.:

• Intended to confer rights to indivuals • Sufficiently clear and precise • Unconditional

Provisions with (might have) Direct Effect : Treaty(ies) provisions , regulations, directives and decisions

Regulations

Directives

Direct Effect - Criteria

1. Confer rights to particulars

2. Sufficiently clear and precise

3. unconditional

Treaty provisions

Decisions

Direct Effect / Direct Applicability • A regulation is of “general application… binding in its entirety and

directly applicable in all Member States” Article 288 TFEU• Regulations take immediate effect in domestic law of (all) MS

without need for further transpositions (direct applicability), so long as provision in regulation meets other criteria for direct effect (sufficiently precise & unconditional) can be enforced before national courts and particulars may rely on them.

-~-• “A Directive shall be binding, as to the result to be achieved, upon each MS

to which it is addressed, but shall leave to the national authorities the choice of form and methods” Article 288 TFEU

• Directives do not have direct applicability, its addressees are the MS (not all sometimes) and they always need to be transposed. But they can have direct effect – Case Van Duyn (1974) – if the MS fails or refuses to implement them (on time / properly), provided they satisfy the other criteria for direct effect.

Regulation Directive

Direct Applicability

Transposition

Direct effect: vertical & horizontal• vertical direct effect – between individuals and MS -

individuals can invoke a EU disposition against the State before a national court. NB – Directives can only have vertical direct effect because they are only binding to the MS (addressees)

• Horizontal direct effect- between individuals – one individual can invoke a EU disposition against another individual (natural or legal person) before a national court. NB – Treaty dispositions, regulations and Decisions can have vertical and horizontal direct effect.

Vertical direct effect

State

Horizontal direct effect

Another individual (natural or legal person)

Primacy

• In case of conflict between national law and EU law, the Court established the «hierarchy» of prevalence between EU law and national law from the MS - judgment Costa v. E.N.E.L (1964)

• The law stemming from the Treaty is never overridden by domestic legal provisions

• Primacy is a precondition for the very existence of EU law . (which cannot be subordinated to the different laws of the MS).

Primacy National law (MS) / EU law

National law

Any EU norm is superior in value to any national norm – even national norms of constitucional nature

Thus the national judge must refuse to apply (or disapply) any national norm contrary to EU law.

EU law

Types of proceedings

• Reference for a preliminary ruling (Art.267 TFEU)

• Actions for failure to fulfil obligations – infringement (Art.258-260 TFEU)

• Actions for annulment (Art.263 TFEU)

• Actions for failure to act (Art.265 TFEU)

• Appeals

Reference for a Preliminary Ruling (when in doubt…ask)

Doubt concerning a norm of EU law…

(interpretation/validity)

The national judge can/mustrefer the question to the CJEU and request clarification / interpretation

Reference for a preliminary rulingPRINCIPLE:

Judicial Cooperation CJEU + national courts & tribunals of the

MS

OBJECTIVE: ensure the effective and uniform application of European Union legislation and to prevent

divergent interpretations

ReferenceNational judge refers to the EU judge

Interpretation of the Treaties

Conformity of national law/EU

law

Validity and Interpretation of acts

of Institutions, bodies, offices and agencies of the EU

Refernce for preliminary ruling – ECJ’s reply

Judgment or Reasoned Order (not a mere opinion...)

Binding force

National judge (in the case)

The Court's judgment likewise binds other national

courts before which the same problem is raised

Reference can be made only by a national court (not by individuals) - all the parties to the proceedings before that court, the MS and the institutions of the EU may take part in the proceedings before the Court of Justice

Some of the principles of EU law were defined by the Court in cases where the mechanism of reference for preliminary ruling was put to

work

1. The Commission (Guardian of the Treaties Art. 17 TEU) conducts a preliminary procedure in which the MS concerned is given the opportunity to reply to the complaints addressed to it (letter of formal notice) to which a reasoned opinion might follow. If that procedure does not result in the MS terminating the failure, an action for infringement of EU law may be brought before the Court (based on the reasoned opinion).

2. Action brought before the Court by:•Commission (+ frequent) •Member State (rare). If the MS is found “guilty”, it must take the necessary measures to comply with the judgement without delay. (Art.260 TFEU)

3. MS does not comply with the judgment – (1st referral)3.1 The Commission brings the case before the Court (2nd referral)3.2 The Court finds that the MS has not complied with its judgment and imposes a:

-lump sum and/or penalty payment (Art. 260 TFEU)

objective: induce the MS to put an end to the infringement of EU law.

Infringement proceedings(MS fails to comply with its obligations)

Pre-litigation stage

Litigation Phase

Action for annulment Who: MS, Commission,

Council, ParliamentJurisdiction – Court of Justice

Who: Individuals (natural or legal)Against an act addressed to them or which is of direct & individual concern to them, and against a regulatory act which is of direct concern to them and does not entail implementing measures.Jurisdiction: General Court (at first instance)

the applicant seeks the annulment of a measure (in

particular a regulation, directive or decision) adopted by an

institution

If the Court accepts the action, it declares

the act to be void.

Action for failure to act (Please…, I am waiting !!!)

• The Court reviews the lawfulness of the failure to act of the institutions, bodies, offices or agencies of the EU

• The action is only admissible if the institution, body, office or agency has first been called to act (Art. 265 TFEU)

• The institution, office, body or agency had to be under a duty to act (E.g – the Commission is not under duty to institute infringement proceedings against a MS which violates EU law. But, according to the case law of the General Court, is under an obligation to act upon a complaint regarding the violation of competition rules)

• Jurisdiction to hear actions for failure to act is shared between the Court of Justice and the General Court according to the same criteria as for actions for annulment

Action for failure to act (I am still waiting…)

The treaty imposes that the Institutions act on certain circumstances.

Where the failure to act is held to be unlawful, it is for the institution concerned to put an end to the failure by complying with the judgment of the Court of Justice

and take appropriate measures.

Appeals (against judgments and orders of the General Court)

General CourtCourt of Justice.

Appeals (on points of law only) may be brought before the Court of Justice against judgments and orders of the

General Court

Where the state of the proceedings so permits, the Court of Justice may itself decide the case

Otherwise, it refers the case back to the General

Court, which is bound by the decision given by the Court of Justice on the appeal.