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The European Court of Justice
The Court of Justice of the European Communities, or the European Court of Justice (ECJ), was created in 1952 by the European Communities in order to ensure that European Community law is applied uniformly throughout the European Union. The ECJ also has the authority to enforce Community law and to provide legal interpretations to Member States. The seat of the court is found in Luxembourg.
The ECJ is made up of three individual courts: the Court of Justice, the Court of First Instance, and the Civil Service Tribunal. The Court of Justice, the original court of the ECJ, consists of 27 judges (one for each Member State of the European Union) and eight Advocates General. The Judges and Advocates General are appointed for renewable six year terms through “common accord by the governments of the Member States.” The judges then elect one of their body to serve as President of the Court. The President’s responsibilities include presiding at gatherings of the full Court and the Grand Chamber, and overseeing the general work and staff of the Court. The Advocates General assist the Court by providing judges with ‘opinions’ of individual cases. The Court of Justice also has a Registrar who manages the administrative affairs of the Court.
Depending on the type of case being heard, judges of the Court will sit as either a full court, as a Grand Chamber (consisting of thirteen judges), or in Chambers of either three or five judges. Cases of “exceptional importance” or proceedings to dismiss the European Ombudsman or a Member of the European Commission require a full court. Particularly complex or important cases will be heard by the Grand Chamber. Member States or institutions party to a case can also request a hearing by the Grand Chamber. All other cases are heard by Chambers of either three or five judges.
Two different types of cases can be brought before the Court of Justice: references for preliminary rulings and direct actions. References for preliminary rulings are requests made to the Court of Justice by national courts seeking clarification on the interpretation of Community law in order to ensure that national legislation complies with Community law, as well as to question the validity of a particular aspect of Community law. References for preliminary rulings are initiated when national courts submit a question to the Court of Justice. The Registry then notifies all Member States and institutions in question, which then have two months to submit comments and observations. Following this two-month period, the parties to the case are given one month to request an oral hearing. After the case is argued at a public hearing, the Advocate General who has been assigned to that particular case delivers his or her opinion regarding the case to the Court. A judgment on the case is given following deliberation by the judges. The decision is made according to the opinion of the majority of the Court; there are no official dissenting opinions. If the case does not seem to raise a new question of law, the Court can decide to render a judgment without an opinion.
The second type of case referred to the Court of Justice is a direct action. Direct actions include “actions for failure to fulfill obligations” (inquiries presented to the Court by either the Commission or Member States questioning a particular State’s fulfillment of Community law); “actions for annulment” (requests from either the European Parliament or a Community institution to annul a measure adopted by an institution); “actions for failure to act” (inquiries presented by either the European Parliament or a Community institution questioning a particular institution’s failure to act according to Community law); “appeals” (questions on judgments issued by the Court of First Instance); and “reviews” (questions on judgments issued by the Court of First Instance pertaining to the European Union Civil Service Tribunal). The procedure for bringing direct action cases before the Court of Justice is much the same as that for references for preliminary rulings, except that, in addition notifying Member States of the case, the Registry also serves the application to the party sued, who can then submit a defense to the Court within one month. The applicant then has one month to submit a reply, and the defendant has an additional month to lodge a rejoinder.
Under certain circumstances the Court can issue a decision by way of “reasoned order” (citing case-law or a previous judgment in answer to a preliminary ruling case). Applicants may also request that the Court use an expedited procedure to issue its judgment, as well as calling for interim measures seeking suspension of a particular action by a Member State or institution where there is a fear that continued operation of measures could cause harm to the party involved.
The second court of the ECJ is the Court of First Instance. The Court of First Instance was created in 1988 to relieve some of the workload of the Court of Justice. It consists of at least one judge from each Member State, who serve terms of six years each with the option to renew. Members of the Court of First Instance appoint a President, who serves for three years, and a Registrar, who serves for six years. Unlike the Court of Justice, the Court of First Instance does not have any Advocates General. For very complex cases, the Court will sit as a full court. Otherwise, the Court meets as a Grand Chamber of thirteen judges or as Chambers of three or five judges. In some instances, only a Chamber of a single judge is required.
The Court of First Instance handles disputes brought by Member States against the Commission, Community institutions, or, in certain instances, against the Council. Some common examples of types of cases brought before the Court of First Instance include questions regarding community trademarks, the application of competition rules, merger and cartel disputes, questions regarding state aid, and disputes over access to official documents. The procedure for bringing a case before the Court of First Instance is similar to that for direct actions brought before the Court of Justice. An application must be filed with the Registry of the Court of First Instance, who then presents the application to the defendant. The defendant can submit a defense, to which the applicant can reply, followed by a rejoinder by the defense. Interventions can be made by any individual, Member State, or Community institution that can prove a vested interest in the outcome of the case. Following the receipt of all interventions, the court holds a public hearing. Finally, the judges deliberate and deliver their decision.
The final court of the ECJ is the Civil Service Tribunal, created in 2004 to aid the Court of First Instance. The Civil Service Tribunal handles all disputes of the European Union civil service dealing with general working relations and the social security system. Seven judges appointed by the Council of Europe for a renewable term of six years make up the Tribunal. The judges appointed must represent as many of the national legal systems of the Member States as possible. A President of the Tribunal is elected for a period of three years. Depending on the difficulty or importance of the case, the Tribunal may sit either as a full court, Chambers of five judges, Chambers of three judges, or Chambers of a single judge. The Tribunal has its own Registry.
In order for the Tribunal to consider a case, applicants must submit their question to the Registry, who then informs the defendant of the dispute. The defendant has two months to submit a defense. The Registry can then decide if a second round of pleadings is needed. As with the Court of First Instance, any person, Members State, or Community institution having an interest in the case can intervene in the proceedings. Following a public hearing, the Tribunal judges deliberate and then issue a judgment. There is then a two-month period in which the decision may be appealed to the Court of First Instance. At any point in the proceedings, the Tribunal may work to find an amicable settlement of the dispute, and, as with the Court of Justice, an interim measure may be ordered by the Tribunal.
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