The European Court of Justice1

This chapter examines the procedure and practice of advocacy before the European Court of Justice and General Court of the European Union. In tracing the historical development of advocacy before the Court from the early days of the European Coal and Steel Community to the present day, the chapter identifies issues particular to the admission requirements of the Court (such as the definition of a ‘lawyer’) arising from that history and manifested in its jurisprudence concerning the appearance of non-traditional legal professionals. In explaining the reasons for the relatively low incidence of problems concerning the conduct of agents and counsel in practice, the chapter also identifies a number of cases in which issues arose concerning the integrity of evidence and the honesty of pleadings. It analyses the issues of professional ethics that have arisen in the practice of the Court, including legal professional privilege or confidentiality. The chapter also sets out the limited control of the EU courts over their rules of procedure and the impact of this situation upon the potential professionalization of advocacy in the unique EU context.