The European Council is the supreme political leadership authority of the Union, and defines the political goals for all policy areas. It is composed of the State and government leaders of the Member States and the President of the Commission.
The European Communities act through various bodies; pursuant to the provisions of the Treaty Establishing the European Union, their activities include areas within the Union’s pillars that (are within the competence of the Member States) have not been made common.
The European Parliament, which is directly elected, consists of representatives from the peoples of the states associated in the Community. The Parliament participates in Community legislation; in many cases, it voice it equal to that of the Council based upon the so-called co-decision procedure. In other cases, it has merely the right to be heard. Among other tasks, it must also approve the nomination of the President of the Commission and its additional members.
The Council consists of one representative from each Member State at the Minister level. It is the primary legislative body for secondary Community law.
The Commission is composed of 27 members. Among its tasks is to draw up proposals for secondary Community law. As the “guardian of Community law,” it acts as a watchdog to monitor compliance with Community law by Member States, private individuals, and companies.
The European Court of Justice (ECJ) is composed of one judge from each Member State; they are supported by a total of eight attorneys general. The attorneys general prepare the cases and make concluding motions. However, the judges are not bound by these proposed decisions. The Court of First Instance is competent for certain cases in their initial phase; appeals from its judgments, limited to questions of law, may be submitted to the ECJ. Finally, the Treaty of Nice now provides the Council with the opportunity of assigning judicial panels within the Court of First Instance with certain substantive areas. It has taken advantage of that opportunity and has created a European Union Civil Service Tribunal.
The European Court of Auditors examines all income and expenditures of the Community for their lawfulness and economic viability.
Additional important bodies include the Economic and Social Committee, Committee of the Regions, and the European Central Bank (ECB).
