The Court of Justice of the European Union and Human Rights in 2019

In 2019, the Court of Justice of the European Union delivered several important judgments in the field of fundamental and human rights law. The purpose of the present contribution is to provide a concise overview of this jurisprudence. It considers judgments in fields such as the rule of law, asylum law, the right to liberty, passive suffrage, equal treatment and the application of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union. Following a brief summary of each case discussed, this contribution analyses selected aspects concerning the protection of fundamental rights in the European Union. The contribution concludes that the jurisprudence likewise shows consolidation and novelties. Generally, it may be concluded that the rule of law serves as an overarching theme. INTRODUCTION In 2019, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) delivered several important judgments in the field of human rights. Due to their constitutional significance, some of them may be described as ‘instant classics’ of European Union (EU, the Union) fundamental rights law. Other rulings are also noteworthy inasmuch as they show new trends or developments in the case law of the Court. The purpose of the present contribution is to provide a concise overview of this jurisprudence. A total of nine judgments that the authors consider to be of importance in 2019 will be discussed. The contribution attempts to find a fair balance between different fields, such as the rule of law, asylum law, the right to liberty, passive suffrage, equal treatment and the application of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union (CFR). The rulings, all of which were delivered by the European Court of Justice (ECJ, the Court), include eight preliminary reference procedures and one infringement procedure. All of them were Grand Chamber judgments. However, it goes without saying that this list is by no means exhaustive. Rather, the present contribution is based on a subjective selection of cases, trying to provide an insight into the activities of the CJEU in the field of fundamental rights protection for the given period.