State Liability for the Infringement of the Obligation to Refer for a Preliminary Ruling under the European Convention on Human Rights Cover Image

Valstybės atsakomybė pažeidus pareigą kreiptis į Teisingumo Teismą prejudicinio sprendimo pagal Europos Žmogaus Teisių Konvenciją
State Liability for the Infringement of the Obligation to Refer for a Preliminary Ruling under the European Convention on Human Rights

Author(s): Regina Valutytė
Subject(s): Law, Constitution, Jurisprudence
Published by: Mykolas Romeris University
Keywords: European Union law; preliminary ruling; state liability; national courts; European Convention on Human Rights; right to a fair trial

Summary/Abstract: The article deals with the question whether a state might be held liable for the infringement of the European Convention on Human Rights if its national court of last instance fails to implement the obligation to make a reference for a preliminary ruling to the Court of Justice of the European Union under the conditions laid down in Article 267 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union and developed in the case-law of the Court. Relying on well-established practice that an arbitrary decision not to refer a question for a preliminary ruling theoretically could infringe the right to a fair trial, the author analyses the practical application of the “arbitrariness rule” and discusses whether the European Court of Human Rights has established any specific criteria that national courts are required to bring into play in order to substantiate the decision not to refer.

  • Issue Year: 19/2012
  • Issue No: 1
  • Page Range: 7-20
  • Page Count: 14
  • Language: English