Court of Justice of the European Union

Court of Justice of the European Union
	Emblem of the Court of Justice of the European Union
	; Palais de la Cour de Justice, Luxembourg
Judicial branch overview
Formed	1952
Jurisdiction	European Union and Northern Ireland
Headquarters	Palais de la Cour de Justice, Kirchberg, Luxembourg City, Luxembourg
Child agencies	Court of Justice; General Court; Civil Service Tribunal (2005–2016);

The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) (French: Cour de justice de l'Union européenne or "CJUE"; Latin: Curia^[2]) is the judicial branch of the European Union (EU). Seated in the Kirchberg quarter of Luxembourg City, Luxembourg, this EU institution consists of two separate courts: the Court of Justice and the General Court.^[3]^[4] From 2005 to 2016, it also contained the Civil Service Tribunal. It has a sui generis court system, meaning 'of its own kind', and is a supranational institution.^[5]

The CJEU is the chief judicial authority of the EU and oversees the uniform application and interpretation of European Union law, in co-operation with the national judiciary of the member states.^[4] The CJEU also resolves legal disputes between national governments and EU institutions, and may take action against EU institutions on behalf of individuals, companies or organisations whose rights have been infringed.^[6]

Composition

The CJEU consists of two major courts:^[7]

the Court of Justice, informally known as European Court of Justice (ECJ), which hears applications from national courts for preliminary rulings, annulment and appeals. It consists of one judge from each EU member country, as well as 11 advocates general.
the General Court, which hears applications for annulment from individuals, companies and, less commonly, national governments (focusing on competition law, state aid, trade, agriculture and trade marks). The General Court is composed of 2 judges from each member country (currently 54),^[8] though only 49^{[citation needed]} seats are currently filled.

Judges and advocate generals are appointed for a "renewable 6-year term, jointly by national governments".^[9]

Function

The CJEU's specific mission is to ensure that "the law is observed" "in the interpretation and application" of the Treaties of the European Union. To achieve this, it:

reviews the legality of actions taken by the EU's institutions;
enforces compliance by member states with their obligations under the Treaties, and
interprets European Union law.^[4]

The composition and functioning of the courts are regulated by the Rules of Procedure.^[10]

History

The CJEU was originally established in 1951 as a single court called the Court of Justice of the European Coal and Steel Communities. With the Euratom and the European Economic Community in 1957 its name changed to the Court of Justice of the European Communities (CJEC).^[10] In 1988 the Court requested the Commission to create a Court of First Instance and in 2004 it added the Civil Service Tribunal. ^[10] The Civil Service Tribunal are for issues of public employment.

The Treaty of Lisbon in 2009 renamed the court system to the "Court of Justice of the European Union" and renamed the CJEC to the "Court of Justice".

The working language of the Court of Justice of the European Union is French.^[11]

Legal interpretation

The Court of Justice of the European Union embraces the substantive equality interpretation of the European Union anti-discrimination law.^[12]

Notes

^ Under the terms of the Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland, concluded as part of the Brexit withdrawal agreement, the CJEU continues to have jurisdiction over the operation of EU law applying to Northern Ireland in relation to customs and the movement of goods, technical regulations, VAT and excise, the Single Electricity Market and State aid, and may hear applications for preliminary rulings made by Northern Irish courts.^[1]

References

^ House of Lords European Union Committee (1 June 2020). 9th Report of Session 2019–21: The Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland (Report). House of Lords. p. 65. Archived from the original on 31 January 2021. Retrieved 2 January 2021. The Protocol will also confer full jurisdiction on the CJEU to oversee the operation of EU law applying to Northern Ireland in relation to customs and the movement of goods, technical regulations, VAT and excise, the Single Electricity Market and State aid; including the jurisdiction to hear applications for preliminary rulings submitted by the courts of Northern Ireland. The UK will have the right to participate in these proceedings as if it were a Member State.
^ "Court of Justice of the European Union". curia.europa.eu.
^ Article 19 TEU: The Court of Justice of the European Union shall include the Court of Justice, the General Court and specialised court.
^ ^a ^b ^c "General Presentation". Curia. Europa. Retrieved 23 October 2015.
^ Bordin, Fernando Lusa; Müller, Andreas Th.; Pascual-Vives, Francisco (31 August 2022). The European Union and Customary International Law. Cambridge University Press. p. 50. ISBN 978-1-108-96751-8.
^ "Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU)". Europa. Retrieved 23 October 2015.
^ "Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU)". Europa.eu. 16 June 2016. Retrieved 13 March 2017.
^ "Presentation - Court of Justice of the European Union". CURIA. Retrieved 2 September 2024.
^ Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU), Composition
^ ^a ^b ^c European Parliament. Directorate General for Parliamentary Research Services. (2016). The role of constitutional courts in multi-level governance: European Union : the Court of Justice of the European Union. LU: Publications Office. doi:10.2861/8. ISBN 9789284602629.
^ "Language arrangements at the Court of Justice of the European Union". Curia. Europa. Retrieved 8 September 2018.
^ De Vos, Marc (2020). "The European Court of Justice and the march towards substantive equality in European Union anti-discrimination law". International Journal of Discrimination and the Law. 20: 62–87. doi:10.1177/1358229120927947.

External links

Official website
Access to documents of the Court of Justice of the EU on EUR-Lex
The archival fonds of the Court of Justice of the European Union is consultable at the Historical Archives of the European Union

49°37′12″N 6°08′22″E / 49.62000°N 6.13944°E / 49.62000; 6.13944

[2] Under the terms of the Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland, concluded as part of the Brexit withdrawal agreement, the CJEU continues to have jurisdiction over the operation of EU law applying to Northern Ireland in relation to customs and the movement of goods, technical regulations, VAT and excise, the Single Electricity Market and State aid, and may hear applications for preliminary rulings made by Northern Irish courts.^[1]

[1] House of Lords European Union Committee (1 June 2020). 9th Report of Session 2019–21: The Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland (Report). House of Lords. p. 65. Archived from the original on 31 January 2021. Retrieved 2 January 2021. The Protocol will also confer full jurisdiction on the CJEU to oversee the operation of EU law applying to Northern Ireland in relation to customs and the movement of goods, technical regulations, VAT and excise, the Single Electricity Market and State aid; including the jurisdiction to hear applications for preliminary rulings submitted by the courts of Northern Ireland. The UK will have the right to participate in these proceedings as if it were a Member State.

[3] "Court of Justice of the European Union". curia.europa.eu.

[4] Article 19 TEU: The Court of Justice of the European Union shall include the Court of Justice, the General Court and specialised court.

[Curia_-_CJEU_General_Presentation-5] "General Presentation". Curia. Europa. Retrieved 23 October 2015.

[Bordin_Müller_Pascual-Vives_2022_p.-6] Bordin, Fernando Lusa; Müller, Andreas Th.; Pascual-Vives, Francisco (31 August 2022). The European Union and Customary International Law. Cambridge University Press. p. 50. ISBN 978-1-108-96751-8.

[Europa_CJEU_Overview-7] "Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU)". Europa. Retrieved 23 October 2015.

[8] "Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU)". Europa.eu. 16 June 2016. Retrieved 13 March 2017.

[9] "Presentation - Court of Justice of the European Union". CURIA. Retrieved 2 September 2024.

[10] Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU), Composition

[:0-11] European Parliament. Directorate General for Parliamentary Research Services. (2016). The role of constitutional courts in multi-level governance: European Union : the Court of Justice of the European Union. LU: Publications Office. doi:10.2861/8. ISBN 9789284602629.

[Curia_-_Language_arrangements_at_the_Court_of_Justice_of_the_European_Union-12] "Language arrangements at the Court of Justice of the European Union". Curia. Europa. Retrieved 8 September 2018.

[13] De Vos, Marc (2020). "The European Court of Justice and the march towards substantive equality in European Union anti-discrimination law". International Journal of Discrimination and the Law. 20: 62–87. doi:10.1177/1358229120927947.

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[1]

v t Judiciary and law of the European Union
Judiciary	Court of Justice of the European Union European Court of Justice members Advocates General General Court Civil Service Tribunal European lawyer Relationship with ECHR Public Prosecutor European civil code
Treaties	Rome Treaty Merger Treaty Single European Act Maastricht Treaty Amsterdam Treaty Nice Treaty Lisbon Treaty Charter of Fundamental Rights Opt-outs
Acts	Acquis: Regulation Directive Framework Directive Decision Recommendation Digital Services Act
Procedures	Ordinary legislative procedure Consultation procedure Consent procedure Commission and Council acting alone Commission acting alone
Principles and terms	Acquis communautaire EUR-Lex Direct applicability Direct effect European labour law European Enforcement Order Gold-plating Four freedoms Home state regulation Indirect effect Incidental effect Minimum harmonisation Maximum harmonisation Preliminary ruling Precautionary principle Principle of legal certainty Recasting Principle of conferral Proportionality Staatenverbund State liability Subsidiarity Supremacy
Regulations	Council Regulation (EC) No. 1206/2001 Council Regulation (EC) No. 1348/2000 Customs Regulation 1383/2003 Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 EU-Eco-regulation Commission Regulation (EC) No. 2257/94 Commission Regulation (EU) No. 1170/2011 Customs Regulation 3295/94 Regulation on roaming charges Brussels Regime CLP Regulation Regulation on Community designs Societas Europaea European Union System for the Evaluation of Substances Commission Regulation (EC) No 474/2006 REACH Rome II Regulation Rule of Law Conditionality Regulation
Directives	Good Clinical Practice Directive Data Protection Directive ATEX directive Battery Directive Best available technology Biocidal Products Directive Birds Directive Capital Requirements Directives Clinical Trials Directive Computer Programs Directive Conditional Access Directive Copyright Duration Directive (93/98/EEC) Copyright Term Directive (2006/116/EC) Cosmetics Directive Dangerous Substances Directive (67/548/EEC) Dangerous Preparations Directive Data Retention Directive Database Directive Database right Directive 2000/43/EC on Anti-discrimination Directive establishing a general framework for equal treatment in employment and occupation Information Society Directive (first Copyright directive) Directive on Privacy and Electronic Communications Directive on the Promotion of the use of biofuels and other renewable fuels for transport Directive on the re-use of public sector information Directive on Electricity Production from Renewable Energy Sources End of Life Vehicles Directive CHP Directive Directive on the energy performance of buildings Directive on the enforcement of intellectual property rights Directive 2004/38/EC on the right to move and reside freely Environmental liability directive European SEA Directive 2001/42/EC European units of measurement directives Habitats Directive Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control Internal Market in Electricity Directive Landfill Directive Directive on the legal protection of biotechnological inventions Directive on the legal protection of designs Markets in Financial Instruments Directive Measuring Instruments Directive Medical Devices Directive Posted Workers Directive Pressure Equipment Directive Rental Directive Resale Rights Directive Restriction of Hazardous Substances Directive Satellite and Cable Directive Directive on services in the internal market Temporary and Agency Work Directive Trade Marks Directive European Directive on Traditional Herbal Medicinal Products Unfair Commercial Practices Directive Universal Service Directive Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive Waste Incineration Directive Waste framework directive Water Framework Directive Working Time Directive
Cases	ECJ Rulings (Caselex): Allonby v Accrington and Rossendale College Apostolides v Orams Bosman Cassis de Dijon Chacón Navas v Eurest Colectividades SA Chen Ciarán Tobin Coleman v Attridge Law Costa v ENEL Factortame Francovich Kamer van Koophandel en Fabrieken voor Amsterdam v Inspire Art Ltd Kolpak Microsoft Corp. v. Commission Marleasing SA v La Comercial Internacional de Alimentacion SA Metock Nordsee Palacios de la Villa v Cortefiel Servicios SA Peter Paul and Others v Bundesrepublik Deutschland Procureur du Roi v Dassonville Ralf Sieckmann v Deutsches Patent und Markenamt Tanja Kreil Van Duyn v Home Office Van Gend en Loos
Fraud	Court of Auditors European Anti-Fraud Office Accountability in the European Union
European Union portal Law portal

Authority control databases
International	ISNI 2 VIAF 2 3 4 FAST
National	Germany United States Czech Republic 2 Portugal Norway Greece Sweden Israel 2 Finland Catalonia
Academics	CiNii
People	Trove

Court of Justice of the European Union

Composition

Function

History

Legal interpretation

See also

Notes

References

Further reading

External links

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