Type: Judgment

Authority: European Authorities: Euopean Union' Court of Justice

Date: 11/19/2019

Subject: According to the Court, Article 47 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union and Directive 2000/78/EC establishing a general framework for equal treatment in employment and occupation preclude cases concerning the application of EU law from falling within the exclusive jurisdiction of a court which is not an independent and impartial tribunal, within the meaning of the former provisions. That is the case where the objective circumstances in which that court was formed, its characteristics and the means by which its members have been appointed are capable of giving rise to legitimate doubts, in the minds of subjects of the law, as to the imperviousness of that court to external factors, in particular, as to the direct or indirect influence of the legislature and the executive and its neutrality with respect to the interests before it and, thus, may lead to that court not being seen to be independent or impartial with the consequence of prejudicing the trust which justice in a democratic society must inspire in subjects of the law. If that is the case, the principle of the primacy of EU law must be interpreted as requiring the referring court to disapply the provision of national law which reserves jurisdiction to hear and rule on the cases in the main proceedings to the abovementioned chamber, so that those cases may be examined by a court which meets the abovementioned requirements of independence and impartiality and which, were it not for that provision, would have jurisdiction in the relevant field

Parties: A.K. (Indépendance de la chambre disciplinaire de la Cour suprême)

Classification: Justice - Art. 47 Independent and impartial tribunal

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