26.08.10: German judges strengthen EU court, clarify Lisbon ruling - 0 views
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Germany's constitutional court has laid down the ground rules for controlling decisions by the EU top's court, an area that had been left unclear after a controversial 2009 ruling by Germany's highest judges on the Lisbon Treaty, the EU's new rule book. In a ruling with far-reaching implications, the German court on Thursday (26 August), gave the green light to a 2005 judgement by the EU court that had called a German law "inapplicable."
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Thursday's pronouncement backed by seven of the eight judges not only avoids a direct conflict with the EU's Luxembourg court but also appears to strengthen it. Germany's court stated that EU decisions may only be checked if European institutions seriously overstep their powers. A headline in the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung says: "Karlsruhe (the court) restricts its own powers."
