Luxembourg, 25/09/2003 (Agence Europe) - The Court of Justice will take on its duties on 6 October in its new formation composed of: two new judges, two new advocates general, five judges and two advocates general whose mandate has been renewed and magistrates whose term of office lasts until 2006. EUROPE recalls that the judges are appointed for six years and that partial renewal is made every three years. They are proposed by their respective governments and appointed after agreement of all Member States. The Court of Justice will therefore be composed of:
The new judges.
Spanish national Rosario Silva de Lapuerta, born in 1954, served as Abogado del Estado from 1989 to 2000 and, in this capacity, represented the Spanish government in a whole series of cases brought before the Court of Justice. Since 2000, Rosario Silva de Lapuerta has been deputy director general of the legal department at the Ministry of Justice. She replaces the current president of the Court, Gil Rodriguez Iglesias, who has been a judge since 1986 and president of the Court since 1994, who had announced his intention to leave the Court this year.
Koen Lenaerts, from Belgium, born in 1954, has been currently a Belgian judge at the Court of First Instance at the EU since 1989. Koen Lenaerts replaces Melchior Wathelet who served as judge at the Court from 1995 but whose mandate has not been renewed by the Belgian government. With his departure, Belgium loses its chance to have a Belgian president at the head of the institution. Melchior Wathelet was one of the favourites on the list (see EUROPE of 30 January 2003). It should be noted that Franklin Dehousse will replace Koen Lenaerts as judge at the Court of First Instance on 6 October.
The new advocates general.
German national Juliane Kokott, born in 1957, specialised in company law, is professor at the St Gallen University in Switzerland. She replaces her compatriot Siegbert Albert whose only term of office at the Court is the result of political alternation that Germany has traditionally supported.
Luís Miguel Poires Pessoa Maduro from Portugal becomes, at the age of 37, the youngest European magistrate ever appointed. He is currently professor in law at the Nova University of Lisbon. He replaces Jean Mischo from Luxembourg who held a "rotating" post attributed every six years to a "small" Member State.
Judges whose mandate is renewed for six years.
Danish Claus Christian Gulmann, born in 1942, who served as advocate general from 1991 to 1994 after which he was judge at the Court . His chances of being appointed as the new president of the Court are limited because of his nationality, as the current president of the Court of First Instance, Bo Vesterdorf, is Danish as was Ole Due, the predecessor of the current president of the Court (see the above mentioned EUROPE).
Fidelma O'Kelly Macken, of Irish nationality and born in 1945, was appointed to the Court in 1999 to replace her compatriot, John Murray (who left for the High Court of Ireland). Fidelma O'Kelly Macken is the first woman to have acceded to a post of judge at the Court. Out of the 63 former members of the Court since 1952, only one woman - Simone Rozes - was briefly advocate general (1981-1984).
Allan Rosas of Finland, born 1948, has been judge since January 2002 to replace Judge Leif Sevon (the current president of the Finnish Supreme Court).
Romain Schintgen of Luxembourg, born 1939, was Judge at the Court of First Instance of the EU (1989-1996) and at the Court since 1996.
Greek national Vassilios Skouris, born 1948, has been a judge at the Court since 1999, and more than ever remains one of the favourites for the post of president because of his good international image and the fact that, since 1981, the date when Greece entered the EU, no Greek national has yet held the presidency of a European institution.
Advocates-general whose mandates have been renewed.
British national Francis Jacob (1939), has been advocate general since 1988. The British government has again put him forward for the post. Dámaso Ruiz-Jarabo Colomer, from Spain, born 1949, has been advocate general at the Court since 1995.
The judges and advocates general are to hold their posts until 2006 when their respective mandates are to expire.
Antonio Mario La Pergola (1931), of Italy, who was advocate general (1994-1995) and judge at the Court since 1999. Austrian Peter Jann (1935), judge since 1995, could also run for presidency. French national Jean-Pierre Puissochet (1936), judge at the Court since 1994, remains despite everything one of the favourites for the post of president. Ninon Colneric (1948), of Germany, has been a judge since July 2000 to replace Günter Hirsch, who left for the presidency of the Bundesgerichtshof. Stig von Bahr (1939), from Sweden, Portuguese José Narciso da Cunha Rodrigues (1940), who has been judge since October 2000, and Dutch Christiaan Willem Timmermans (1941) as well as Advocates General Philippe Léger (France) and Christine Stix-Hackl (Austria), Leendert Geelhoed (Netherlands) and Antonio Tizzano (Italy) remain at their posts another three years.
All judges except the new judges are said to have the intention of applying for the post of president. The unlucky applicants may be elected to the presidency of one of the five-judge chambers.
Finally, we note that the British government has appointed Lord Justice Schiemann (1937), who is to replace David Edward at the end of the year. Mr Edward is resigning three years before the end of his term of office.
The British government is one of the few governments to advertise vacancies in the papers. In most of the other Member States, clever political or institutional balances preside over the choice of applicants. The Treaty only requires a few criteria for applicants who must: provide all guarantees of independence, meet the conditions required for carrying out the highest jurisdictional duties in their respective countries or be a jurisconsult with recognised competence (Article 223 of the Treaty).
The European Convention has suggested a more binding procedure to the Intergovernmental Conference. Member States should, before appointing a judge or an advocate general, consult a committee which gives its opinion on whether the applicants are suitable to take on the post of judge and advocate general.