The European Court of Justice

Abstract

The transformation of the European legal system into a binding legal order, to some extent detached from member states’ control, has given the European Court of Justice (ECJ) a position that in practice lets it decide on the allocation of values in Europe. From a judicial politics perspective this situation raises a number of questions concerning the preferences, powers and behaviour of political, societal and legal actors, which lawyers, historians and political scientists have only started to answer. On the input side, what political interests are being mobilised as a consequence of, and are directing themselves toward, the political powers of the ECJ? What instruments can political and societal actors use to influence the Court, and how do they use them? Does the shield of law protect the Court from political interference, or is a counter-process of politicisation of the Court occurring? On the output side, how are the ECJ’s decisions received and handled by those affected? And inside the box of ECJ decision-making, what do judges want, and how do they act to achieve that? What preferences do they have on key political conflict dimensions such as left-right and pro-anti European integration? What is their zone of discretion given political constraints? Is the Court affected by threats of legislative override and/or non-compliance? Or are the interactions between the Court and its societal and political counterparts better described as a deliberative process rather than a strategic political game? Papers analysing the input, process and outcome of ECJ decision-making are welcome. Studies making comparisons with processes of judicial politics in other international or national settings are particularly appreciated. Both historical and contemporary accounts of judicial politics in the EU are welcome.

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