Luxembourg: New General Court judges appointed

By decision of 23 March 2016, the representatives of the governments of the EU member states have appointed Mr Zoltán Csehi, Mr Constantinos Iliopoulos, Ms Anna Marcoulli, Ms Nina Półtorak and Mr Dean Spielmann (pictured) as Judges at the General Court for the period from 13 April 2016 to 31 August 2016.

Mr Leopoldo Calvo-Sotelo Ibáñez-Martín and Mr Virgilijus Valančius have been appointed as Judges at the General Court for the period from 13 April 2016 to 31 August 2019.

The news comes as a report last week by a judge of the court argued that the European Court of Justice (ECJ) abused its own rules in order to double the number of judges in the General Court.

These appointments mark the first stage of implementation of the reform of the judicial structure of the court, which will see an increase in the number of judges and a change in the structure of the institution with the transfer to the General Court of jurisdiction at first instance in European civil service disputes and the dissolution of the European Union Civil Service Tribunal.

In addition, by its decision of 22 March 2016, the Council of the European Union has appointed Mr Alexander Kornezov and Mr João Sant’Anna as Judges at the European Union Civil Service Tribunal for the period from 13 April 2016 to the date on which jurisdiction is transferred from that tribunal to the General Court.

A formal sitting of the Court of Justice will take place today on the occasion of the taking of the oath and the entry into office of the new Judges.

The ceremony will be streamed live from 17.30.