Judicial Protection

 

Course objectives

The judicial system of the EU guarantees the uniform interpretation and application of EU law. Thus, by ensuring that all EU Member States and institutions comply equally with their obligations within the EU institutional framework, the Court of Justice of the European Union has been for more than sixty years a dynamic driver of an irreversible European integration. This course is an intensive, detailed and in-depth study and analysis of the EU judicial institutional architecture, namely of the Court of Justice, the General Court, and the Civil Service Tribunal. It introduces the students to their proceedings, methodology and legal principles; presents and analyzes their case-law in a systematic way; reveals the historical circumstances under which the case-law was developed; examines the underlying national problems that the judges attempted to solve; familiarizes the students with legal research in both electronic and print format; cultivates their capacity to identify and retrieve legal texts, case-law documents and bibliography references that are needed in order to fully comprehend all the necessary parameters of an EU issue; provides a sound knowledge of procedures and advocacy techniques necessary for the successful development of legal arguments and for the presentation and defence of a case before the Luxembourg courts.

Course Meta

 

Course Description

The course is an intensive study of the EU system of Judicial Protection. It begins with a general theoretical overview of the EU judicial institutional architecture examining its historical evolution, the sources and the underlying fundamental principles. It proceeds with an in-depth analysis of the models of judicial approach and the methodological patterns that have led the way up to today’s EU integration level. Further to this analytical introduction, it continues with the presentation of the competences and the analysis of the case-law and proceedings of the Court of Justice, the General Court, and the Civil Service Tribunal. As part of the in-depth understanding of the core of the EU judicial system and its institutional architecture that the course is about, it includes a presentation and analysis (a) of the technocratic qualities and methodology that are considered necessary in order to develop legal arguments and present a case before the courts, as well as (b) of the structural patterns and the stylistic techniques that have to be used at the decision making and drafting by the judges of the courts. It concludes with the application of the theoretical and practical acquired knowledge to simulated court proceedings in different levels and thematic groups.

 

Course Outline

1. The evolution of the EU’s concept of Judicial Protection system
1.1 Introductive historical overview
1.2 Institutional context, fundamental principles & sources
2. Judicial Protection in the integration process
2.1 Judicial activism & judicial restraint
2.2 Interaction with the national judicial systems
3. The Court of Justice
3.1 Presentation
3.2 Competence – Proceedings
4. The Court of Justice
4.1 Introduction to case-law milestones
4.2 Case-law analysis
5. The General Court
5.1 Presentation
5.2 Competence – Proceedings
6. The General Court
6.1 Introduction to case-law milestones
6.2 Case-law analysis
7. The Civil Service Tribunal
7.1 Presentation
7.2 Competence – Proceedings
8. The Civil Service Tribunal
8.1 Introduction to case-law milestones
8.2 Case-law analysis
9. Conduct of thematic research in EU case-law & bibliography
9.1 Construction of a research plan – Time-management – Acquisition of information
9.2 Analysis & synthesis process – Composition and defense of a case
10. Written and oral advocacy & ethical duties before the Court
10.1 Composition of legal arguments
10.2 Writing techniques – Rhetorical styles – Codes of conduct
11. Group-solving problem procedures
11.1 Public hearing
11.2 Deliberation
12. Decision drafting models
12.1 Structure – Linguistic style and terminology –
12.2 Sources – Reasoning
13. Simulated court proceedings
13.1 Workshops
13.2 Moot courts

 

Educational Outcomes

Upon completion of the course, students will have a genuine and detailed understanding of the EU judicial mechanism, namely of the three courts that constitute the EU Judicial Protection system; the Court of Justice, the General court, and the Civil Service Tribunal. They will be able to demonstrate a sound and in-depth understanding of the case-law milestones that have led the way to the EU’s integration process; to read, understand and use EU statutes and other enacted rules for solving legal problems; to conduct case-law and academic research in EU law; to use precedents to construct legal arguments; to predict all possible scenarios of a legal dispute before the EU courts and to compose and defend a case before them. They will have learned case-management techniques and patterns and will have been simulated to court internal and public proceedings in multiple role playing scenarios. The course is intended for students who are aiming at acquiring a combination of a sound theoretical knowledge and effective practical skills in EU’s Judicial Protection.

Basic Textbook(s)

– Schermers, H, Judicial Protection in the European Union (The Hague: Kluwer Law International, 2014)
– Schermers, H and Waelbroeck, D, Judicial Protection in the European Union, (The Hague: Kluwer Law International, 2001)
– Craig, P and De Búrca, G, EU Law: Text, Cases, and Materials, (Oxford: OUP, 2011)

 

Basic Bibliography

– De Búrca, G and Weiler, J (eds), The European Court of Justice (Collected Courses of the Academy of European Law), (Oxford: OUP, 2001)
– Broberg, M and Fenger, N, Preliminary References to the European Court of Justice (Oxford: OUP, 2010, second edition estimated March 2014)
– Micklitz, H-W, De Witte, B (eds), The European Court of Justice and the Autonomy of the Member States (Cambridge: Intersentia, 2012)
– Beck, G, The Legal Reasoning of the Court of Justice of the EU (Modern Studies in European Law) (Oxford: Hart Publishing, 2012)
– Syrpis, P, The Judiciary, the Legislature and the EU Internal Market (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2012)
– Dawson, M, De Witte, B, Muir, E (eds.), Judicial Activism At The European Court of Justice, (Cheltenham: Edward Elgar Publishing, 2013)
– Scalia, A and Carner, B, Making Your Case: The Art of Persuading Judges, (St Paul: Thomson/West, 2008)
– Adams, M, De Waele, H, Meeusen, J and Straetmans, G (eds.), Judging Europe’s Judges: The Legitimacy of the Case Law of the European Court of Justice (Oxford: Hart Publishing, 2013)
– Waegenbaur, B (ed.), The Statute and Rules of Procedure of the Court of Justice of the European Union: A Commentary, (Oxford: Hart Publishing, 2013)
– Stefan, O, Soft Law in Court. Competition Law, State Aid and the Court of Justice of the European Union, (The Hague: Kluwer Law International, 2012)
– Baaij, C, The role of legal translation in legal harmonization, (The Hague: Kluwer Law International, 2012)

 

Teaching Methodology

Lectures: 13 lectures x 2 hours = 26 hours
Tutorials: 7 tutorials x 2 hours = 14 hours
Total: = 40 hours

 

Evaluation

Final Exam = %
Course Participation = %
Paper(s) = %
Total = %

 

Language

English

 

Location

 

General note

While the ‘Course Objectives’ and ‘Educational Outcomes’ above remain immutable, the ‘Course Content’ and ‘Course Outline’ may be altered in order to accommodate students’ needs and individual professors’ approaches. Bibliography and reading materials may vary accordingly.