The courts in the European Union have the task of preserving Community law and protecting the citizens’ rights to which it gives rise.
On the Community level, the ECJ and the Court of First Instance secure compliance with the law in interpreting and applying the Treaty.
In the area of European Community law, the European courts have an abundance of responsibilities which enables comprehensive court supervision of the actions both of the Member States and the bodies of the Community. In the area of Union law, the ECJ’s competence is restricted.
Pursuant to the EC Treaty, the competence of the ECJ includes the following types of proceedings:
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Actions due to Treaty violations, brought by
the Commission or a Member State against a Member State accused
of having violated Community law. If a violation is determined
and is not remedied by the affected Member State, it may be
ordered as the result of a second proceeding to pay a fixed sum
or a coercive fine.
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Actions for declaration of nullity, whose goal
is to determine the invalidity of actions by Community bodies
taken to create legal effects. For example, violation of
provisions regarding competence or form might result in a
declaration of nullity.
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Actions for failure to act, which assert that
Community bodies have failed to issue a decision despite their
primary-law obligation.
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Actions to determine official liability, which
claim compensation for damage incurred by the plaintiff due to
the actions of a Community body or an employee of the
Community.
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Requests for preliminary rulings, which allow
national courts to turn to the ECJ to request answers to
questions regarding the validity or the interpretation of
Community law which are determinative for decision in
proceedings pending before their national courts.
- Appellate review of decisions by the Court of First Instance.
The Court of First Instance has jurisdiction over certain types of first-instance actions which are neither reserved for decision by the ECJ nor allocated to the chambers assigned to the Court of First Instance. These primarily include so-called direct actions (nullity, failure to act, and compensation for damages) if they are asserted by private individuals and companies.
In addition to the courts of the Community, the national courts have the task of upholding Community law as well. Of central importance here are the requests for preliminary rulings; these ensure the uniform application of Community law in all Member States. For this reason, national courts, whose decisions are not subject to review, are obligated to submit to the EJC issues of Community law which are determinative for decisions they are called upon to make.
