General Court (European Union)

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The General Court (Template:Langx), informally known as the European General Court (Template:Abbr. EGC), is a constituent court of the Court of Justice of the European Union. It hears actions taken against the institutions of the European Union by individuals and member states, although certain matters are reserved for the European Court of Justice. Decisions of the General Court can be appealed to the Court of Justice, but only on a point of law. Prior to the coming into force of the Lisbon Treaty on 1 December 2009, it was known as the Court of First Instance.

Competence

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The General Court has competence over the following cases.[1]

  • Actions for annulment brought by individuals

Such actions are brought by individuals against acts of the Union institutions. To be admissible, the act being challenged must either be directly addressed to the person; or be a regulatory act that directly affects that person and needs no further implementing measure to come into effect; or directly and individually concern the legal situation of the person bringing the case.

  • Actions for annulment brought by EU member states

Such actions are brought by EU member states against acts of the European Commission. Sometimes acts of the Council of the EU can also be targeted, if they concern state aid, trade and anti-dumping issues or other acts where the Council exercises implementing powers.

  • Actions for failure to act by individuals

These actions can be brought when a EU institution has been asked to act but has failed to do so.

  • Actions for damages

Actions for the reparation of damage caused by unlawful conduct on the part of a Union institution.

  • Actions based on an arbitration clause

Disputes concerning contracts in public or private law entered into by the Union, containing such a clause.

  • Actions concerning the civil service (disputes between the Union and its officials and other servants) – from 2005 to 2016 these cases were transferred to the European Union Civil Service Tribunal, but returned to the General Court when its size was doubled.
  • References for preliminary rulings

All such cases are initially brought before the Court of Justice, which can then transfer them to the General Court when they concern:

  • VAT
  • customs, excise duties or the tariff classification of goods
  • greenhouse gas emissions trading
  • passenger compensation

The Court of Justice does not transfer these cases, and instead rules itself, when they involve a decision of principle that may affect the unity or consistency of EU law.[2]

  • Staff cases

Cases where a member of the staff of an EU institution has a grievance towards its employer. Originally dealt with by the European Union Civil Service Tribunal, the General Court took them over when the Tribunal was dissolved on 1 September 2016.[3]

All cases heard at first instance by the General Court may be subject to a right of appeal to the Court of Justice on points of law only. However, due to the high number of appeals lodged, a mechanism is now in place to filter them and allow only a few to reach the Court of Justice.[2]

Composition

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Since February 2020 the General Court is composed of 54 Judges; this follows a 2016 reform which increased the number of judges to two per member state by 2019, and the departure of the UK from the EU at the end of January 2020. The Judges are appointed for a renewable term of six years by common accord of the governments of the Member States. As of February 2020, there are 49 Judges in post: 23 member states have nominated both their judges, whilst Latvia, Poland, and Slovakia have nominated just one, and Slovenia has nominated neither.

The members of the General Court elect their president and the presidents of the Chambers of five Judges from among their number for a renewable period of three years.

There are no permanent Advocates General attached to the General Court (unlike the European Court of Justice, which has eleven Advocates General). However, the task of an Advocate General may be performed in a limited number of cases by a Judge nominated to do so. In practice this has been done occasionally.[1]

List of presidents

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Elected Term ended Judge
25 September 1989 18 September 1995 Portugal José Luís da Cruz Vilaça
18 September 1995 4 March 1998 Italy Antonio Saggio
4 March 1998 17 September 2007 Denmark Bo Vesterdorf
17 September 2007 26 September 2019 Luxembourg Marc Jaeger
27 September 2019 Incumbent Netherlands Marc van der Woude

List of vice-presidents

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Elected Term ended Judge
17 September 2013 19 September 2016 Finland Heikki Kanninen
20 September 2016 26 September 2019 Netherlands Marc van der Woude
27 September 2019 Incumbent Cyprus Savvas Papasavvas

List of judges

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Name Country Elected Current term ends Other
Viktor Kreuschitz Austria Austria 2013 2022
Gerhard Hesse Austria Austria 2019[4] 2022
Paul Nihoul Belgium Belgium 2016[5] 2022
Geert De Baere Belgium Belgium 2017[5] 2022
Mariyana Kancheva Bulgaria Bulgaria 2011[6] 2025[7]
Alexander Kornezov Bulgaria Bulgaria 2016 2025[7] President of the Tenth Chamber
Vesna Tomljenović Croatia Croatia 2013[8] 2025[9] President of the Second Chamber
Tamara Perišin Croatia Croatia 2019[10] 2025[9]
Savvas Papasavvas Cyprus Cyprus 2004[11] 2022 Vice-president of the General Court (2019–2022)
Anna Marcoulli Cyprus Cyprus 2016[12] 2022 President of the Sixth Chamber
Petra Škvařilová-Pelzl Czech Republic Czech Republic 2019 2025
David Petrlík Czech Republic Czech Republic 2021[13] 2025
Sten Frimodt Nielsen Denmark Denmark 2007 2022
Jesper Svenningsen Denmark Denmark 2016 2022 President of the Eighth Chamber
Lauri Madise Estonia Estonia 2013 2022
Iko Nõmm Estonia Estonia 2019[9] 2022[9]
Heikki Kanninen Finland Finland 2009[14] 2022 President of the First Chamber
Vice-president of the General Court (2013–2016)
Tuula Pynnä Finland Finland 2019[9] 2022[9]
Stéphane Gervasoni France France 2013 2025[7] President of the Fourth Chamber
Laurent Truchot France France 2019[7] 2025[7] Judge (2007–2013)
Johannes Laitenberger Error creating thumbnail: Germany 2019 2025
Gabriele Steinfatt Error creating thumbnail: Germany 2019[15] 2025[9]
Dimitris Gratsias Greece Greece 2010 2022
Constantinos Iliopoulos Greece Greece 2016[12] 2022
TBA Hungary Hungary
Zoltán Csehi Hungary Hungary 2016[12] 2022
Suzanne Kingston Republic of Ireland Ireland 2021[16] 2025[17]
Colm Mac Eochaidh Republic of Ireland Ireland 2017[18] 2025[9]
Roberto Mastroianni Italy Italy 2019 2025
Ornella Porchia Italy Italy 2019 2025
TBA Latvia Latvia
Inga Reine Latvia Latvia 2016[19] 2025[7]
Rimvydas Norkus Lithuania Lithuania 2019 2025
Virgilijus Valančius Lithuania Lithuania 2016[12] 2019*
Marc Jaeger Luxembourg Luxembourg 1996 2022 President of the General Court (2007–2019)
Dean Spielmann Luxembourg Luxembourg 2016[12] 2022 President of the Fifth Chamber
Eugène Buttigieg Malta Malta 2012 2025
Ramona Frendo Malta Malta 2019 2025
Marc van der Woude Netherlands Netherlands 2010 2022 President of the General Court (2019–2022)
Vice-president of the General Court (2016–2019)
René Barents Netherlands Netherlands 2016 2022
Krystyna Kowalik-Bańczyk Poland Poland 2016 2022
Nina Półtorak Poland Poland 2016[12] 2016*
Ion Gâlea Romania Romania 2021 2022
Mirela Stancu Romania Romania 2019[7] 2022[7]
Ricardo Da Silva Passos Portugal Portugal 2016 2022 President of the Seventh Chamber
Maria José Costeira Portugal Portugal 2016[20] 2022 President of the Ninth Chamber
Juraj Schwarcz Slovakia Slovakia 2009[21] 2022[22]
TBA Slovakia Slovakia
Maja Brkan Slovenia Slovenia 2021[23] 2025[24]
Damjan Kukovec Slovenia Slovenia TBA
José Martín y Pérez de Nanclares Spain Spain 2019[25] 2025
Miguel Sampol Pucurull Spain Spain 2019[25] 2025
Ulf Christophe Öberg Sweden Sweden 2016[26] 2025[7]
Fredrik Schalin Sweden Sweden 2016[19] 2025[7]

* Judge continues to hold the office until their successor takes up the duties according to the Article 5(3) of the Protocol No. 3 on the Statute of the Court of Justice of the EU

List of former judges

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Name Country Elected Term ended Ref.
Josef Azizi Austria Austria 19 January 1995 16 September 2013 [27]
Koen Lenaerts Belgium Belgium 25 September 1989 6 October 2003 [28]
Franklin Dehousse Belgium Belgium 6 October 2003 19 September 2016 [28]
Teodor Tchipev Bulgaria Bulgaria 12 January 2007 29 June 2010 [29]
Irena Pelikánová Czech Republic Czech Republic 12 May 2004 26 September 2019 [28]
Jan M. Passer Czech Republic Czech Republic 19 September 2016 6 October 2020 [30]
Bo Versterdorf Denmark Denmark 25 September 1989 17 September 2007 [28]
Küllike Jürimäe Estonia Estonia 12 May 2004 23 October 2013 [28]
Virpi Tiili Finland Finland 8 January 1995 6 October 2009 [28]
Jacques Biancarelli France France 25 September 1989 18 September 1995 [28]
André Potocki France France 18 September 1995 19 September 2001 [28]
Hubert Legal France France 19 September 2001 17 September 2007 [28]
Heinrich Kirschner Error creating thumbnail: Germany 25 September 1989 6 February 1997 [28]
Jörg Pirrung Error creating thumbnail: Germany 11 June 1997 17 September 2007 [28]
Alfred Dittrich Error creating thumbnail: Germany 17 September 2007 26 September 2019 [28]
Christos G. Yeraris Greece Greece 25 September 1989 18 September 1992 [28]
Andreas Kalogerpoulos Greece Greece 18 September 1992 17 September 1998 [28]
Michail Vilaras Greece Greece 17 September 1998 25 October 2010 [28]
Ottó Czúcz Hungary Hungary 12 May 2004 19 September 2016 [28]
Barna Berke Hungary Hungary 19 September 2016 2 August 2021 [31]
Donal Barrington Republic of Ireland Ireland 25 September 1989 10 January 1996 [28]
John Cooke Republic of Ireland Ireland 10 January 1996 15 September 2008 [28]
Kevin O'Higgins Republic of Ireland Ireland 15 September 2008 16 September 2013 [28]
Anthony M. Collins Republic of Ireland Ireland 16 September 2013[32] 7 October 2021[33]
Antonio Saggio Italy Italy 25 September 1989 4 March 1998 [28]
Paolo Mengozzi Italy Italy 4 March 1998 3 May 2006 [28]
Enzo Moavero Milanesi Italy Italy 3 May 2006 15 November 2011 [28]
Guido Berardis Italy Italy 17 September 2012 31 August 2019 [28]
Ezio Perillo Italy Italy 19 September 2016 26 September 2019 [28]
Ingrida Labucka Latvia Latvia 12 May 2004[34] 25 February 2020
Vilenas Vadapalas Lithuania Lithuania 12 May 2004 16 September 2013 [28]
Egidijus Bieliūnas Lithuania Lithuania 16 September 2013 26 September 2019 [28]
Romain Schintgen Luxembourg Luxembourg 25 September 1989 11 July 1996 [28]
Ena Cremona Malta Malta 12 May 2004 22 March 2012 [29]
Peter George Xuereb Malta Malta 6 June 2016 8 October 2018 [28]
Cornelis Paulus Briët Netherlands Netherlands 25 September 1989 17 September 1998 [28]
Arjen Meij Netherlands Netherlands 17 September 1998 13 September 2010 [29]
Irena Wiszniewska-Bialecka Poland Poland 15 May 2004 19 September 2016 [27]
Nina Półtorak Poland Poland 13 April 2016 31 August 2016 [27]
José Luis Da Cruz Vilaça Portugal Portugal 25 September 1989 18 September 1995 [27]
Rui Manuel Gens De Moura Ramos Portugal Portugal 19 September 1995 31 March 2003 [27]
Maria Eguénia Martins De Nazaré Ribeiro Portugal Portugal 31 March 2003 19 September 2016 [27]
Valeriu M. Ciuca Romania Romania 12 January 2007 26 November 2010 [29]
Andrei Popescu Romania Romania 26 November 2010 19 September 2016 [27]
Octavia Spineanu-Matei Romania Romania 19 September 2016 7 October 2021 [29]
Daniel Šváby Slovakia Slovakia 21 May 2004 6 October 2010 [29]
Verica Trstenjak Slovenia Slovenia 7 July 2004 6 October 2006 [27]
Miro Prek Slovenia Slovenia 6 October 2006 26 September 2019 [27]
Rafael Garcia-Valdecasas Y Fernández Spain Spain 25 September 1989 17 September 2007 [28]
Santiago Soldevila Fragoso Spain Spain 17 September 2007 16 September 2013 [28]
Ignacio Ulloa Rubio Spain Spain 16 September 2013 26 September 2019 [28]
Leopoldo Calvo-Sotelo Ibáñez-Martín Spain Spain 13 April 2016 26 September 2019 [28]
Pernilla Lindh Sweden Sweden 18 January 1995 6 October 2006 [27]
Nils Wahl Sweden Sweden 6 October 2006 28 November 2012 [27]
Carl Wetter Sweden Sweden 18 March 2013 19 September 2016 [27]
Former Member State
David A. O. Edward United Kingdom United Kingdom 25 September 1989 10 March 1992 [27]
Christopher William Bellamy United Kingdom United Kingdom 10 March 1992 15 December 1999 [27]
Nicholas James Forwood United Kingdom United Kingdom 15 December 1999 7 October 2015 [27]
Ian Stewart Forrester United Kingdom United Kingdom 1 October 2015 31 January 2020

List of registrars

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Elected Term ended Judge
27 September 1989 6 October 2005 European UnionError creating thumbnail: Hans Jung
6 October 2005 30 April 2023 European UnionFrance Emmanuel Coulon
5 June 2023 Incumbent European UnionItaly Vittorio Di Bucci

Procedure

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The General Court has its own Rules of Procedure. The 1991 rules were replaced by revised Rules of Procedure which came into effect on 1 July 2015.[35] The Court's procedure includes a written phase and an oral phase. The proceedings are conducted in the language chosen by the petitioner. As in the European Court of Justice, the working language of the Court is nevertheless French, and this includes the language the judges deliberate in and the drafting language of preliminary reports and judgments.[36]

The Court is separated into 9 divisions (called 'chambers') sat by 3-judge benches, except for the 7th division whose bench is sat by 4 judges. Each chamber has an extended composition of 5 judges. Cases are assigned by the President of the Court to a relevant divisional presiding judge. The presiding judge assigned to the case then chooses a judge-reporter (judge-rapporteur) from the judges of the division, whose clerks write a preliminary report (rapport préalable) based on the parties' pleadings and applicable law.

At the close of the written phase and, as the case may be, on adoption of measures of inquiry, the case is argued orally in open court. The proceedings are interpreted simultaneously, if necessary, into various official languages of the European Union. The judges then deliberate based on a draft judgment prepared by the judge-reporter. The Court's final judgment is handed down in open court.[37]

Notes

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References

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  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Court of Justice of the European Union". curia. Retrieved 18 February 2026.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Rezki, Leila (17 December 2025). "A View from the Court of Justice. Some Considerations About the Transfer of Competence for Preliminary Rulings to the General Court: The Functioning of the Guichet Unique and a Brief Review After Nine Months of Implementation of the Reform". European Papers - A Journal on Law and Integration. 2025 10 (3): 877–888. doi:10.15166/2499-8249/858. ISSN 2499-8249.
  3. ↑ "REGULATION (EU, Euratom) 2016/1192 OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of 6 July 2016 on the transfer to the General Court of jurisdiction at first instance in disputes between the European Union and its servants". Official Journal of the European Union. 200/138. 26 July 2016. Retrieved 1 February 2018.
  4. ↑ "EU court names another judge in drive to alleviate workload". Luxembourg Times. 6 September 2019. Retrieved 2 February 2026.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 "The policy of Belgium within the EU". FPS Foreign Affairs. 27 November 2023. Retrieved 2 February 2026.
  6. ↑ "Bulgaria Renominates EU Court Member". Novinite. 10 October 2012. Retrieved 2 February 2026.
  7. ↑ 7.00 7.01 7.02 7.03 7.04 7.05 7.06 7.07 7.08 7.09 "Court of Justice of the European Union: Eleven members appointed".
  8. ↑ "Representatives of Croatia on EU institutions". Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs of the Republic of Croatia. 11 July 2013. Retrieved 2 February 2026.
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 9.4 9.5 9.6 9.7 "Member states' representatives appoint 14 judges to the General Court".
  10. ↑ Demas, Kristy (26 July 2019). "Former Michigan Law Fulbright Scholar Named to General Court of the EU". Oakland County Legal News. Retrieved 2 February 2026.
  11. ↑ Naud, Emilio (16 September 2025). "Marc van der Woude and Savas Papasavas re-elected to their posts". Paperjam. Retrieved 2 February 2026.
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 12.3 12.4 12.5 "Luxembourg: New General Court judges appointed". Scottish Legal News. 13 April 2016. Retrieved 2 February 2026.
  13. ↑ "Octavia Spineanu-Matei, numită judecătoare în cadrul Curții de Justiție a Uniunii Europene" [Octavia Spineanu-Matei appointed judge at the Court of Justice of the European Union]. Euractiv.ro (in Romanian). 19 February 2021. Retrieved 2 February 2026.
  14. ↑ "Heikki Kanninen Finland's candidate for judge at the General Court of the European Union". Valtioneuvosto. 17 June 2015. Retrieved 4 February 2026.
  15. ↑ Cornelia Riehle (28 October 2025). "Partial Renewal of Members and Chambers of the General Court". eucrim. Retrieved 7 March 2026.
  16. ↑ "Irish judge elected president of EU General Court chamber". Irish Legal News. 30 September 2025. Retrieved 5 February 2026.
  17. ↑ "EU Court of Justice: nine judges of the General Court appointed". consilium.europa.eu. Retrieved 26 December 2021.
  18. ↑ "Two Irish EU judges reappointed". Irish Legal News. 9 October 2024. Retrieved 5 February 2026.
  19. ↑ 19.0 19.1 Rensch, Simone (8 June 2016). "General Court of the EU appoints three new judges". International Tax Review. Retrieved 2 February 2026.
  20. ↑ "Maria José Costeira". Concurrences. Retrieved 7 March 2026.
  21. ↑ "The Judicial Council of the Slovak Republic elected candidates to represent Slovakia in the international judicial bodies". Judicial Council of the Slovak Republic. 18 June 2024. Retrieved 7 March 2026.
  22. ↑ "Judicial Council to Elect Candidates for Judges of European Courts on June 18". TASR. 5 May 2024. Retrieved 7 March 2026.
  23. ↑ Heledd Pritchard (6 July 2021). "New ECJ judge appointed as court doubles in size". Luxembourg Times. Retrieved 7 March 2026.
  24. ↑ "Entry into office of a new member of the General Court of the European Union" (PDF). Court of Justice of the European Union. PRESS RELEASE No 119/21. 6 July 2021.
  25. ↑ 25.0 25.1 "Les représentants des États membres nomment 14 juges au TGUE". Abogacía Española (in French). 4 June 2019. Retrieved 7 March 2026.
  26. ↑ "Ulf Öberg". Concurrences. Retrieved 7 March 2026.
  27. ↑ 27.00 27.01 27.02 27.03 27.04 27.05 27.06 27.07 27.08 27.09 27.10 27.11 27.12 27.13 27.14 "CURIA – Mandati od leta 1989 – Sodišče Evropske unije". curia.europa.eu. Retrieved 16 January 2020.
  28. ↑ 28.00 28.01 28.02 28.03 28.04 28.05 28.06 28.07 28.08 28.09 28.10 28.11 28.12 28.13 28.14 28.15 28.16 28.17 28.18 28.19 28.20 28.21 28.22 28.23 28.24 28.25 28.26 28.27 28.28 28.29 28.30 28.31 28.32 "CURIA – Former Members". CVRIA. Retrieved 2 May 2010.
  29. ↑ 29.0 29.1 29.2 29.3 29.4 29.5 "CURIA – Former Members". CVRIA. Retrieved 11 October 2012.
  30. ↑ "EU Court of Justice: three judges and an advocate-general appointed". consilium.europa.eu (in Slovenian). Retrieved 17 December 2020.
  31. ↑ "Meghalt Berke Barna, az Európai Unió Törvényszékének bírája, az Igazságügyi Minisztérium egykori államtitkára". telex (in Hungarian). 2 August 2021. Retrieved 2 August 2021.
  32. ↑ "Anthony Michael Collins". CURIA. Archived from the original on 1 January 2020. Retrieved 26 December 2021.
  33. ↑ "CURIA – Presentation of the Members – Court of Justice of the European Union". curia.europa.eu. Archived from the original on 6 December 2021. Retrieved 26 December 2021.
  34. ↑ Annual Report 2014 (PDF) (Report). Court of Justice of the European Union. 2015. p. 90. Retrieved 7 March 2026.
  35. ↑ General Court of the European Union, New procedural rules adopted by the General Court, Press Release 73/15, published 19 June 2015, accessed 15 November 2022
  36. ↑ Mattila, Heikki E. S. (2006). Comparative legal linguistics – Heikki E. S. Mattila – Google Boeken. Ashgate Publishing. ISBN 9780754648741. Retrieved 27 January 2012.
  37. ↑ "The General Court – how the procedure works". curia. Retrieved 18 February 2026.
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Template:Court of Justice of the European Union

Coordinates: 49°37′16″N 6°08′35″E / 49.6210°N 6.1431°E / 49.6210; 6.1431

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