THE EUROPEAN COURT

The European Court is the highest court in the European Union. The Court was established in 1952 by the Treaty of Paris (1951) and is based in Luxembourg City — unlike most other Union institutions which are based in Brussels. The EC is the highest court of the European Union in matters of European Union law, but not national law with each Member having its own legal system. It makes sure that EU-level legislation is interpreted and applied in the same manner across the whole European Union. This is to avoid national courts interpreting the same legislation differently. Its decisions are binding, ensuring Member States, and institutions follow the law. For example if a state fails to implement a directive or the Commission acts outside its power. The Court can also settle legal disputes between states, institutions, businesses and individuals. It is the responsibility of the European Court to ensure that the law is observed in the interpretation and application of the Treaties of the European Union and of the provisions laid down by the competent European Union institutions. To enable it to carry out that task, the Court has wide jurisdiction to hear various types of action.

The European Court is composed of one judge per Member State and eight Advocates General. The Court is led by a President. The President of the European Court is elected from among the judges every three years. The President presides over hearings and deliberation s, directing judicial business and administration (for example, the time table of the Court). The Judges and Advocates General are appointed by common accord of the governments of the Member States and hold office for a term of six years. They are chosen from legal experts whose independence is 'beyond doubt ' and who possess the qualifications required for appointment to the highest judicial offices in their respective countries or who are of recognized competence. However, as the European Court can only sit with an uneven number of judges, additional judges have been appointed at times when there was an even number of Member States.

The European Court sits as a full Court, in a Grand Chamber (13 Judges), or in chambers of three or five Judges. It sits in a Grand Chamber when a Member State or a Community institution that is a party to the proceedings so requests, or in particularly complex or important cases. Other cases are heard by a chamber of three or five Judges. The quorum for the full Court is 15. The Court acts as a collegiate body: decisions are made by the Court rather than by individual judges.

There are other courts that consider legal problems in the European Union. The other body of the European Union judicial system is the General Court which give rulings on certain cases, particularly those brought by private individuals, companies and some organizations. It also deals with competition law.

The Civil Service Tribunal deals with disputes between the European Union and the European civil service, and Court of Auditors considers problems of the Union's accounts.

The European Court should not be confused with the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg, which is part of the Council of Europe, which supervises compliance with the European Convention on Human Rights and functions as the highest European court for human rights and fundamental freedoms.

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