英语论文网

Court of Justice of the European Communities
PRESS RELEASE No 104/09
留学论文代写Luxembourg, 30 November 2009
Press and Information
The Treaty of Lisbon and the Court of Justice of the European Union
The Treaty of Lisbon, which was signed on 13 December 2007 by the 27 Heads of State or Government of the Member States of the Union, comes into force on 1 December 2009. It amends the two fundamental treaties – the Treaty on European Union (TEU) and the Treaty establishing the European Community, with the latter to be known in future as the ‘Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union’ (TFEU). 1
The Treaty of Lisbon makes changes to the organisation and jurisdiction of the Court of Justice of the European Union.
A. Changes in the organisation of the Court and the appointment of its Members
The European Union, which will henceforth have legal personality, will replace the European Community. Accordingly, under the Treaty of Lisbon, the ‘pillar’ structure will disappear and the Union will have a new institutional framework. As a result, in common with the institutions to be renamed, the whole court system of the European Union will be known as the Court of Justice of the European Union, 2 comprising three courts: the Court of Justice, the General Court and the Civil Service Tribunal.
With regard to the creation of specialised courts, the Treaty of Lisbon maintains some existing provisions but introduces certain changes in relation to procedures for the creation of such courts, namely that, from now on, they will be created in accordance with the ordinary legislative procedure (that is to say by co-decision with a qualified majority) rather than, as hitherto, by unanimity.
It follows from the Treaty of Lisbon that a request for amendment of the Statute of the Court of Justice of the European Union 3 will be deemed to be a ‘draft legislative act’ 4 and must be subject to the ordinary legislative procedure. By contrast, the rules on the Judges and Advocates General and the language arrangements of the Court will remain subject to the unanimity rule.
With regard to the arrangements for the appointment of Members of the Court, the Treaty of Lisbon preserves the existing provisions in so far as Judges are appointed by common accord of the Governments of the Member States for six years, but from now on they will be appointed after consultation of a panel responsible for giving an opinion on candidates’ suitability to perform the duties of Judge and Advocate General of the Court of Justice and the General Court. This panel will comprise seven persons chosen from among former members of the two Courts, members of national supreme courts and lawyers of recognised competence, one of whom will be proposed by the European Parliament. Acting on the initiative of the President of the Court of Justice, the Council will adopt decisions establishing the panel’s operating rules and appointing its members.
1 Only the European Atomic Energy Community or ‘Euratom’ will remain (Protocol No 1 amending the Protocols annexed to the Treaty on European Union, to the Treaty establishing the European Community and/or to the Treaty establishing the European Atomic Energy Community).
2 Article 19 TEU.
3 The Statute of the Court of Justice of the European Union appears in Protocol No 3.
4 Protocol No 2 on the application of the principles of subsidiarity and proportionality.
With regard to Advocates General, there is provision un