Sanitary measures adopted in order to ensure that hearings can take place from 25 May 2020 (applicable to the Court of Justice and the General Court)

[19/05/2020]

Following the decisions taken by the Court of Justice and the General Court to recommence hearings progressively with effect from 25 May 2020, the strictest sanitary measures have been adopted, in accordance with the laws adopted by the Luxembourgish authorities, in order to allow those hearings to proceed under the best possible conditions.

Those measures concern both (I) access to the institution’s buildings and the rules that must be complied with while moving around within them, and (II) the arrangements for the hearing itself, which have been adapted in response to the current exceptional circumstances.

I. Access to the institution’s buildings and the essential rules of conduct within them

Access by the parties’ representatives to the institution’s buildings will exclusively be through the entrance to the Erasmus building (rue du fort Niedergrünewald, L-2925 Luxembourg).

The reception procedure for the parties’ representatives will be similar to the usual procedure, subject to:

• a temperature check to be carried out at a distance (persons with a temperature higher than 38°C will not be permitted to enter the buildings), and
• signing a declaration stating inter alia that, to his or her knowledge, the person has not been a carrier of Covid-19 during the preceding two weeks and that he or she has not been in contact, during the same period, with anyone suffering from Covid-19.

If the parties’ representatives do not possess appropriate masks upon arrival at the Court, a mask will be provided by the security service. The mask must be worn at all times while moving around the institution’s buildings and wherever it is not possible to maintain a distance of 2 meters between two people.

In the same way as the institutions’ staff, the parties’ representatives will also be asked to read carefully the information given on notice boards, and to observe strictly the instructions given. Those notices will be repeated, where appropriate, by appropriate markings on the floor and walls.

Finally, it should be noted that a limited restaurant service (in the nature of sandwiches and drinks) will be provided.

II. Arrangements for hearings

In order to provide a high level of sanitary protection, tables, microphones and earphones will be disinfected after each hearing.

The institution will not make gowns available for use by the parties’ representatives. Agents and lawyers are therefore asked to bring their own gown for use at the hearing but, if that is not possible, the Court of Justice and the General Court will, by way of derogation from the applicable rules, allow representatives to plead without a gown.

Contrary to the usual practice, the members of the formation of the Court hearing the case will not meet with the parties’ representatives before the start of the hearing. The presence of those representatives will be checked, before the start of the hearing and at a distance, by the registrar for the hearing and the court usher.

The necessary arrangements have also been made in order to ensure compliance with the physical distancing rules within each hearing room. The parties’ representatives will be positioned in such a way as to maintain a two meter distance between each person present within the room.

The parties’ representatives will make their oral submissions from the place that will have been indicated to them. In cases where one microphone must be used by several people, it will be cleaned and disinfected after each intervention.

Those representatives who wish to provide the possible text or written aid for their pleading for the needs of the interpretation services are asked to send them, as far as possible, before midday (local time of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg) on the working day before the day of the hearing, to the address: Interpretation@curia.europa.eu.

Change to judicial activities

[25/05/2020]

Owing to the health crisis, the General Court of the European Union has been obliged to change its working arrangements temporarily.

Time limits

Time limits continue to run and the parties are required to comply with those time limits, without prejudice to the possibility of invoking the second paragraph of Article 45 of the Protocol on the Statute of the Court of Justice. Where it is possible for time limits to be extended, it is for a party seeking an extension to make a request in good time, so that the Court may give a ruling on that request.

In order to take into account the legitimate difficulties that the parties are currently facing, the time limits that are to be fixed by the registry shall be adapted to the context of the health crisis.

Hearings

Hearings had been suspended with effect from 16 March 2020 due to the health crisis, but will resume in the Court’s hearing rooms during the week of 25 May 2020. The representatives of the parties in the cases concerned will be informed of the dates and times of those hearings. All necessary measures are being taken to ensure that hearings take place under optimal conditions from both a logistical and sanitary perspective. The Court is however conscious that whether hearings resume and are conducted remains dependent on the decisions taken by the national authorities in order to combat transmission of the virus. To facilitate travel to Luxembourg, the registry can, on request, issue representatives with a document certifying that a hearing is being held before the General Court.

The parties are requested to consult regularly the internet site of the Court of Justice of the European Union (https://curia.europa.eu).