1. National remedies and national actions
The involvement on national courts: National remedies, State liability, preliminary ruling

2. National Courts as European Courts
According to the ECJ, the national courts are the principal judicial enforcers of European Law.
Functionally, the direct effect and supremacy of EU law transforms every national court into a European court (cooperative federalism)

3. National procedural authonomy
The basis of judicial cooperation between national and EU courts is the principle of procedural authonomy: when national authorities are responsible for implementing European law it must be recognized that in principle this implementation takes place with due respect for the forms and procedures of national law.

4. Obligations for national courts
Duty of sincere cooperation (art. 4(3) TEU)
«Member States shall provide remedies sufficient to ensure effective legal protection in the fields covered by Union law (art. 19(1) TEU)
Principle of equivalence
Principle of effectiveness
Liability principle

5. Principle of equivalence
National procedures and remedies for the enforcement of European rights cannot be less favourable than those relating to similar actions of a domestic nature. Prohibition of discrimination: when applying European law, national courts must act as if they were applying national law.

6. Principle of effectiveness
National laws and procedures must not render impossible or excessively difficult the exercise of rights conferred by European law.

7. State liability
European remedy for breaches of European law by States.
Francovich doctrine: «the principle whereby a State must be liable for loss and damage caused to individuals as a result of breaches of European law for which the State can be held responsible is inherent in the system of the Treaty».

8. State liability: conditions
The rule of law infringed by the State must be intended to confer rights on individuals
The breach must be sufficiently serious
There must be a direct causal link between the breach of the obligation resting on the State and the damage sustained by the injured parties
If these conditions are fulfilled, European law confers a right to reparation (action for damage in front of national courts)

9. Preliminary rulings – article 267 TFEU
It is the procedure by which national courts, if they encounter problems in the application of European law, can refer «preliminary questions» to the ECJ.
This procedure of preliminary ruling is the cornerstone of the Union’s judicial federalism (cooperative federalism, based on the cooperation between European court and national courts in the adjudication of cases that involve European law).

10. Jurisdiction of the Court
Validity of European acts
Interpretation of European law (Treaties included)
The Court in theory has no jurisdiction on application of EU law, nor can ascertain whether a national law violates EU law. But in practice the Court often makes this kind of assessments.

11. Legal nature of preliminary rulings
A preliminary ruling is addressed to the national court who requested it. It is the national court who is responsible for deciding the pending case, on the basis of the interpretation of EU law given by the ECJ
Declaratory theory: interpretation of EU rules given by the ECJ clarify the meaning and scope of the rule as it must be undestood and applied from the time of its coming into force.

12. National courts and tribunals
Judicial authorities in the Member States
Established by law
Permanent
Compulsory jurisdiction
Procedure inter partes
Applies rules of law
Independent
Any national court or tribunal, at any level of the national judicial hierarchy, and at any stage of its judicial procedure, is entitled to refer a preliminary question to the ECJ

13. Questions
The national courts can request preliminary rulings when they have doubts on the validity or interpretation of a EU rule that is relevant to the resolution of a dispute.
If this is the case, the national court formulates a question and addresses the question to the ECJ

14. Obligation of preliminary reference – art. 267, par. 3
Where any such question is raised in a case pending before a court or tribunal of a Member State against whose decisions there is no judicial remedy under national law, that court or tribunal shall bring the matter before the Court. This is the case where a judicial decision cannot be appealed before a higher court.
In the case of references on the validity of EU law, the Court has said that all national courts – even courts that are not courts of last resort – are under an obligation to refer when they are in doubt about the validity of an Union act. This is because of the exclusive power of the ECJ to invalidate Eu acts.

15. Limit to the obligation to refer preliminary questions
Act clair:
When the question raised is materially identical with a question which has already been the subject of a preliminary ruling in a similar case
When the Court has already given a negative answer to a question relating to the validity of a Union act
When the correct application of EU law is so obvious as to leave no scope for any reasonable doubt as to the matter in which the question raised is to be resolved