The European Court of Justice

Book abstract:

This volume of essays examines the judicial system of the European Union with particular focus on the role of the European Court of Justice (ECJ) and Court of First Instance. The book is based on a series of seminars given at the summer courses of the Academy of European Law at the European University Institute, Florence in 1999. The book aims to explore areas of the topic which have not been previously explored such as a legal-philosophical account of the ECJ's reasoning, a sociological analysis of patterns of litigation before the Court, and the impact and presence of gender on the Court's work and on its institutional position.

The book has six chapters contributed by academics from around Europe. These are Mobilising the European Court of Justice; Integration and Integrity in the Legal Reasoning of the European Court of Justice; Gender and the Court of Justice; Turning Remedies Around - A Sectoral Analysis of the Court of Justice; and The Jurisdiction of the Community Courts Reconsidered. Ideas examined in these chapters include the relationship between national courts and the Courts of Justice, and the possible effects on the Courts of Justice and the Court of First Instance of the reforms to the judicial structure proposed during the Nice Summit in December 2000.

The book is aimed at postgraduates and academics.

Gráinne de Búrca is Professor of European Union Law at the European University Institute.

J. H. H. Weiler is Jean Monnet Professor of Law and Director of the Center for International and Regional Economic law and Justice at New York University School of Law.