A Review of the Legal Consequences Arising from ECJ and CFI's Judgments
73 Pages Posted: 26 Aug 2008
Date Written: August, 26 2008
Abstract
No study has so far systematically explored the legal consequences arising from the formal release of a judgment by the European Court of Justice ("ECJ") and the Court of First Instance ("CFI"). Yet, a cursory examination of the case-law indicates that ECJ and CFI judgments trigger a myriad of legal implications over time (ratione temporis), over parties and third parties (ratione personae) and raise difficult implementation issues. A judgment rendered in the field of EU tax law may, for instance, give rise to a right to reimbursement of the unlawful national tax scheme as well as to a claim for damages against a Member State.
Our paper seeks to fill this gap in legal literature. First it reviews the direct effects (res judicata, etc.) of the most common types of ruling adopted by the ECJ and the CFI. We mainly focus on judgments rendered over annulment actions, infringement proceedings against Member States and in the context of the preliminary ruling procedure (I). Second, we elucidate in a consistent fashion the various indirect effects arising from those decisions and, in particular, the right to obtain reimbursement, the possibility to recast binding national court decisions and the ability to claim damages against the European Community or Member States (II).
Note: Downloadable document is in French.
Keywords: European Law, Court of Justice, Court of First Instance, Legal Implications, Res Judicata
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