Oral Hearings before the European Court of Justice
| Published date | 01 December 2014 |
| Author | Allan Rosas |
| DOI | 10.1177/1023263X1402100402 |
| Date | 01 December 2014 |
| Subject Matter | Article |
596 21 MJ 4 (2014)
ARTICLES
ORAL HEARINGS BEFORE
THEEUROPEAN COURT OF JUSTICE
A R*
ABSTRACT
is article focuses on the organiz ation of oral hearings at the European Court of Justice.
It deals with both the decision to hold or not to hold an oral hearing, as a complement to
the written part of the procedure, and the actual conduct of such hearings. is is done
by drawing on the modi cations introduced by the recast of the Rules of Procedure of
the Court of Justice undertaken in 2012 and the Practice Directions to Parties adopted
by the Court in 2013 as well as actual practice following the entry into force of the new
Rules of Procedure. e article also draws upon the experience of the present author as a
judge at the Court since 2002 and chairman of the Rules of Procedure Committee of the
Court since 2009. What role doe s the oral hearing play in the overall handling of cases and
what have been the most recent developments in this regard? Some attention will also be
paid to fundamental rights concer ns, notably the right to a fair and public hearing and
its relevance for the organization and conduct of hearings. e article will not address
the broader notion of ‘oral part of the procedure’ to the extent that it covers the Opinion
of the Advocate General as well. Nor shall I consider in any detail the organization of
oral hearings by the other Union Courts, that is, the General Court and the Civil Service
Tribunal, where due to the nature of proceedings the oral hearing plays an even more
important part than before the Court of Justic e.
Keywords: or al hea ring ; Pract ice Di recti ons to Pa rtie s; rig ht to a fa ir and public h eari ng;
Rules of Procedure of the Europea n Court of Justice
* Dr.Jur., Dr.Jur. h.c., Dr.Sc.Pol. h.c. ; Judge at the European C ourt of Justice, S enior Fellow of the
University of Turku; Visiting Professor, College of Europe and University of Helsinki; former Armfelt
Professor of Law, Åbo Ak ademi University and former Pri ncipal Legal Advis er and Deputy Director-
General of the L egal Service of t he European Commis sion.
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