European law knowledge management; Eurinfra: Court Coordinators - PDF document

Presentation Yammer CCE’s European law knowledge management; Eurinfra: Court Coordinators European Law. The Dutch approach: Contributions to a European Judicial Culture. In 2001 we faced in the Netherlands within the Judiciary the following problems: THE PROBLEM THE PROBLEM • RECOGNI SABI LI TY OF RECOGNI SABI LI TY OF • EUROPEAN LAW EUROPEAN LAW • ACCESSI BI LI TY OF ACCESSI BI LI TY OF • SOURCES OF LAW SOURCES OF LAW • KNOW LEDGE OF EU KNOW LEDGE OF EU • LAW AMONG JUDGES LAW AMONG JUDGES NOT SUFFI CI ENT NOT SUFFI CI ENT To solve these problems we formulated the following objectives: 1

Presentation Yammer CCE’s OBJECTI VE OBJECTI VE • I MPROVEMENT OF THE I MPROVEMENT OF THE • ACCESSI BLI TY OF EUROPEAN ACCESSI BLI TY OF EUROPEAN LAW BY W EBTECHNOLOGY LAW BY W EBTECHNOLOGY • RAI SI NG THE LEVEL OF RAI SI NG THE LEVEL OF • KNOW LEDGE W I THI N THE KNOW LEDGE W I THI N THE JUDI CI ARY JUDI CI ARY • APPOI NTMENT OF APPOI NTMENT OF • SPECI ALI STS I N EU SPECI ALI STS I N EU- - LAW I N LAW I N THE COURTS THE COURTS We have now reached the following results. PROJECT RESULTS PROJECT RESULTS • A EUROPEAN LAW MENU A EUROPEAN LAW MENU • EMBEDDED I N PORTA I URI S EMBEDDED I N PORTA I URI S • I MPROVED TRAI NI NG I MPROVED TRAI NI NG • FACI LI TI ES OFFERED BY THE FACI LI TI ES OFFERED BY THE DUTCH TRAI NI NG CENTRE FOR DUTCH TRAI NI NG CENTRE FOR THE JUDI CI ARY ( SSR) THE JUDI CI ARY ( SSR) • ESTABLI SHI NG OF A NETW ORK ESTABLI SHI NG OF A NETW ORK • OF COURT COORDI NATORS OF COURT COORDI NATORS EUROPEAN LAW ( CCE’ EUROPEAN LAW ( CCE ’S) S) 2

Presentation Yammer CCE’s PORTA EUROPEA PORTA EUROPEA • EU EU- - LEGI SLATI ON LEGI SLATI ON • • EU EU- - CASE LAW CASE LAW • • NATI ONAL EU NATI ONAL EU- - RELATED CASE RELATED CASE • LAW LAW • ADDI TI ONAL I NFORMATI ON ADDI TI ONAL I NFORMATI ON • ( GUI DE FOR REFERENCE FOR ( GUI DE FOR REFERENCE FOR PRELI MI NARY RULI NG,I NFO- PRELI MI NARY RULI NG,I NFO - EXCHANGE BETW EEN CCE` S) EXCHANGE BETW EEN CCE` S) • NEW SCOLUMN NEW SCOLUMN • That means that: 1. from their desks, judges and staff lawyers have access via web technology by entering the European Law menu, as a subpart of the overall web system, Porta Iuris, to sources of European law in a user-friendly; integrated and rapid manner. The following sources are concerned: - legislation and regulations (in force and consolidated): - European conventions and treaties; - European legislation; - Netherlands implementation regulations; 3

Presentation Yammer CCE’s - Case law: - Decisions of the Court of Justice, of the General Court, and of the European Court of Human Rights; - Cases pending before the Court of Justice (including references as for preliminary rulings); - Texts and commentaries from inter alia the most well-known judicial Dutch magazines; - Decisions of Netherlands Courts and Tribunals in cases in which Community Law has been applied or explained; - a toolkit with checklists (such as checklist concerning the reference for a preliminary rulings, EC checklist), manuals and tutorials on the basis of handbooks and training material; - a “source of information”, including inter alia information by and about Courts 4

Presentation Yammer CCE’s Coordinators European law (CCE); This is a new phenomenon and I will give more explanation on this point later on. - A “news column” (Commission, Council, ICER,etc.) 2. For queries concerning inter alia references for preliminary rulings and current matters of European law judges and staff members will be served by (the secretariat of) the Court coordinators European law, or may find an answer to their questions on the judiciary intranet. One of the most important results of the Eurinfra project is the establishing of a network of Court Coordinators European law. About this network I would like to make some more specific remarks. 5

Presentation Yammer CCE’s CCE CCE Court Court Coordinators Coordinators European law law European I ntroduction I ntroduction European law is of great European law is of great im portance for litigants in im portance for litigants in Europe Europe 6

Presentation Yammer CCE’s I ntroduction I ntroduction I t is therefore im portant I t is therefore im portant that every that every judiciary has sufficient judiciary has sufficient know ledge of European know ledge of European law . law . In former days talking about the enormous acquis communautaire, consisting in treaties, thousands of regulations, directives and a huge amount of judgments of the European courts, combined with the duty of the national judge to present himself as a European judge as well, most of the time members of the Dutch judiciary had the following vision on themselves: 7

Presentation Yammer CCE’s That common old vision had to be changed and has been changed. I ntroduction I ntroduction This does not m ean that he: This does not m ean that he: - should predict on his ow n should predict on his ow n - future developm ents future developm ents concerning European law concerning European law and and - should try to find in all should try to find in all - cases the answ ers all by cases the answ ers all by him self. him self. 8

Presentation Yammer CCE’s Eurinfra Eurinfra Eurinfra helped the helped the Eurinfra judiciary w ith the correct judiciary w ith the correct application of European law application of European law by enforcing the know ledge by enforcing the know ledge infrastructure concerning infrastructure concerning European law in the European law in the judiciary pow er judiciary pow er Eurinfra Eurinfra Eurinfra is based on three pillars: is based on three pillars: Eurinfra - im proving the accessibility of im proving the accessibility of - European law inform ation resources European law inform ation resources using w eb technology; using w eb technology; - im proving the know ledge of im proving the know ledge of - European law am ongst the Dutch European law am ongst the Dutch judiciary; judiciary; - m aintaining the netw ork of Court m aintaining the netw ork of Court - Coordinators European law Coordinators European law ( CCE) . ( CCE) . 9

Presentation Yammer CCE’s CCE- - netw ork netw ork CCE Every court ( including the Every court ( including the Dutch Suprem e Court and the Dutch Suprem e Court and the Adm inistrative Jurisdiction Adm inistrative Jurisdiction Division of the Council of Division of the Council of State) has one or m ore court State) has one or m ore court coordinator( s) ( ) ( CCE CCE’ ’s s) . ) . coordinator( s Together they they form form Together The CCE netw ork netw ork . . The CCE 10

Presentation Yammer CCE’s CCE- - netw ork netw ork CCE The netw ork of court The netw ork of court Coordinators is facilitated and Coordinators is facilitated and supported by ‘ ‘het College van het College van supported by Beroep voor voor het het bedrijfsleven bedrijfsleven’ ’ Beroep ( the Adm inistrative High Court ( the Adm inistrative High Court for Trade and I ndustry) for Trade and I ndustry) Official CCE job Official CCE job description: : description Provides clarity clarity and and Provides ensures transparency ensures transparency for for CCEs, CCEs , their their Court Court Boards Boards and the court court as a as a w hole w hole. . and the 11

Presentation Yammer CCE’s CCE CCE objective of the objective of the task task Objective of the task of the court Objective of the task of the court coordinator ( CCE) : coordinator ( CCE) : to contribute to the correct to contribute to the correct application of European law . application of European law . A CCE is an A CCE is an inform ation inform ation broker broker A CCE is an A CCE is an experienced experienced judge judge or or justice w ho w ho actively actively adm inistrates adm inistrates justice justice. justice . 12

Presentation Yammer CCE’s CCE CCE contacts contacts The activities are The activities are perform ed perform ed w ithin the court. w ithin the court. CCEs: CCEs : contacts and contacts and scope scope President President Quality Quality coordinator coordinator Judges Judges I NTERNAL I NTERNAL CCE CCE Local Local fellow fellow knowledge knowledge CCE’ CCE ’s s network network EXTERNAL EXTERNAL 13

Presentation Yammer CCE’s CCE CCE result areas result areas Result areas: Result areas: 1 . coordinating access to European 1 . coordinating access to European law w ith a view to its practical law w ith a view to its practical application; application; 2 . keeping abreast of and passing on 2 . keeping abreast of and passing on know ledge of European law ; know ledge of European law ; 3 . provision of inform ation about 3 . provision of inform ation about European law European law CCE CCE coordinating coordinating Ad 1 ) Ad 1 ) The CCE arranges w ithin his ow n The CCE arranges w ithin his ow n court for a ( consultation) court for a ( consultation) structure ( consisting of sectoral sectoral structure ( consisting of contacts) . contacts) . 14