Preliminary Rulings to the ECJ 2nd ed long review

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• published: 02 Jul 2014
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BOOK REVIEW PRELIMINARY REFERENCES TO THE EUROPEAN COURT OF JUSTICE 2nd edition By Morten Broberg and Niels Fenger ISBN: 978 0 19 870402 7 OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS www.oup.com THOROUGH AND CONCISE ADVICE TO PRACTITIONERS ON SUBMITTING PRELIMINARY REFERENCES TO THE ECJ An appreciation by Phillip Taylor MBE and Elizabeth Taylor of Richmond Green Chambers 'Preliminary references are a mechanism created to ensure the homogenous application of EU law throughout the Member States,' explain the authors of this scholarly and rigorously detailed work of reference which should certainly clarify any number of issues pertaining to the workings of the European Court of Justice (ECJ). Published by the Oxford University Press, and now in its second edition, this is a text of vital interest to practitioners involved with disputes scheduled to be held before the ECJ. Originally published in 2008 in Danish, the book has been translated into three other European languages, plus of course, English. This new English edition therefore makes a timely appearance following enactment of the Lisbon Treaty after 2009. It is worth noting that the preliminary reference which is made precedes the preliminary ruling of the Court (ECJ). This book is therefore especially useful for practitioners in that it deals with the amended procedures -- post-Lisbon -- involved in how to make a preliminary reference, which inevitably involves effective written advocacy, the one element what will make or break a case, as we have found with our own judicial review system here. This new edition contains much new material, including, for example a completely rewritten and expanded section of the doctrine of 'acte clair', which is examined at length -- and which provides yet more evidence of the continuing attempts to achieve further of harmonization of legal processes across the EU. Some will argue that such harmonization is but a distant dream and, as the authors have done, will to point out that the EU has expanded to (in 2013) 28 Member States and 24 official languages... so far! Our observation -- and it is an obvious one -- is that this level of linguistic and cultural diversity will have any number of implications and consequences which the Court must address in arriving at judgments which are seen to be fair to all parties embroiled in disputes. For example, will it be necessary to check each of the official language versions of each applicable EU provision to ensure that each version means the same thing? Well, not really, or, er, not exactly. As the learned authors, Morten Broberg and Niels Fenger, have explained, the ECJ has merely reminded the national courts of the multilingual character of EU law and has thus drawn the attention of each national court to the fact that, 'even where the interpretation of the specific EU act may appear to be straightforward... the interpretation of the same act may turn out to be much more complex when other language versions are taken into account.' Practitioners involved in the complexities of this area of law will certainly appreciate this book as a guide, so to speak, as to what to do and what not to do when structuring a preliminary reference, the reference being in fact an 'application', as we would call it in the UK. We would draw attention to certain chapters which practitioners will find particularly useful. Chapter 8 focuses on the form and content of a reference, while Chapter 9 deals with proceedings before the referring court after a reference has been made. Chapter 10 deals with the procedure before the ECJ and the final chapter provides succinct and useful guidance on litigation, costs and legal aid. As an advice book for advisers, this volume of over 500 pages functions also as an invaluable research resource. Copiously footnoted throughout, it contains almost eighty pages of tables of cases and of legislation, including treaties and conventions and directives, plus a handy list of abbreviations. The detailed table of contents and comprehensive index aid navigation. As an up to date guide to what you as a practitioner have to do to make your application to the Court before you even set foot in it, this book will doubtless emerge as an indispensable addition to your professional library. The publication date is 2014.