Changes from report parliamentary committee draft to plenary report

Change 9 under “2. MOTION FOR A EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT RESOLUTION”

Changed12.13. Agrees with the CJEU that the Commission, as guardian of the treaties,Treatiess, should monitor Member States’ compliance with CJEU rulings, butrulings; reiteratereiterates its call on the CourtCJEU, strictly within the limits of its role, to set a mechanism to identify best and poor practices among Member States;

Change 10 under “2. MOTION FOR A EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT RESOLUTION”

Removed14. Notes that the average duration of proceedings for the cases closed by the Court of Justice was 17,7 months in 2024 compared to 16,1 months in 2023, whereas the respective increase by approximately six weeks was due to the complexity and voluminosity of some files (such as actions brought in 2020 against the Union’s so-called ‘mobility pack’ and closed in 2024); notes that the average duration for the cases closed by judgement or by order by the General Court increased from 18,2 months in 2023 to 18,5 months in 2024;

Added15. welcomes, at the same time, the reduction of the average time taken to dispose of cases under the urgent procedure before the Court of Justice, which fell from 4, 3 months in 2023 to 3, 3 months in 2024;

Added16. Notes that the average duration of proceedings for the cases closed by the Court of Justice was 17,7 months in 2024 compared to 16,1 months in 2023, whereas the respective increase by approximately six weeks was due to the complexity and voluminosity of some files (such as actions brought in 2020 against the Union’s so-called ‘mobility pack’ and closed in 2024); notes that the average duration for the cases closed by judgement or by order by the General Court increased from 18,2 months in 2023 to 18,5 months in 2024; stresses that the timeliness of judicial proceedings must remain a core performance objective, as excessive length directly affects legal certainty for citizens, national courts and economic operators;

Added17. Calls on the CJEU to explore, in cooperation with the national courts, practical guidance tools (such as guidelines, preliminary reference templates and online training sessions) to support clear and focused formulation of the questions submitted in preliminary rulings, thereby reducing the risk of unnecessary or excessively long proceedings;

Change 11 under “2. MOTION FOR A EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT RESOLUTION”

Changed16.19. Welcomes the performance-based approach developed by the CJEU, allowing the CJEU to take decisions based on the level of achievement of its objectives, measured through a set of workload and operational indicators (e.g. cost-efficiency, project completion rates, user satisfaction and resource optimisation) tailored to each department; notes that the key performance indicators used by the CJEU cover a wide range of specific areas in support of the five management objectives relating to the proper functioning of the two courts, digitalisation and emerging technologies, openness and transparency, multilingualism and human resources management; highlights the need for the CJEU to ensure that these indicators are transparent, outcome-oriented and regularly reviewed to support effective management and accountability;

Change 12 under “2. MOTION FOR A EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT RESOLUTION”

Changed17.20. Welcomes its approach revised in 2024 regarding the return on investment of innovation initiatives, by taking into account cost evaluation through parameters such as implementation and personnel efforts, annual maintenance, contractors cost and other types of costs, as well as evaluation of benefits through parameters such as projected gains, strategic advantages and number of users impacted; notes that in 2024, the CJEU also made a thorough revision of its system to follow project management and financial tracking of projects, with a view to ensuring a complete reporting and control over its time-based digitalisation consultancy services by 2025; invites the CJEU to keep the discharge authority updated on this matter;

Change 13 under “2. MOTION FOR A EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT RESOLUTION”

Changed18.21. Notes and from the CJEU’s internal audit report for 2024 (the ‘internal report’) that the main audit activities carried out by the CJEU’s internal audit department in 2024 concerned an audit of the CJEU’s project to upgrade its infrastructure security arrangements and projects of property inventory, as well as three studies: on changes in CJEU’s human capital needs in the age of generative AI; on competences of organisations and their employees in a changing environment; and on well-being of employees and emerging technologies); notes with appreciation from the internal report that the departments concerned took action to implement audit recommendations, often before the audits were concluded; further notes that in relation to the 2024 programme, work was ongoing in 2025 for an audit of IT licences and for the last part of the audit of the management of furniture and equipment purchases; observes that the reported state of play of the latter audit has remained unchanged for two consecutive reporting periods; invites the CJEU in the future to present an update on the monitoring of actions taken on internal audit recommendations in table format, with status of implementation for each action and recommendation;

Change 14 under “2. MOTION FOR A EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT RESOLUTION”

Changed20.23. Notes that the Court of Justice is composed of 27 Judges and 11 Advocates General and the General Court is composed of 54 Judges; notes further that nine new Judges at the Court of Justice and two new Judges at the General Court took office on account of partial replacement in 2024; regrets that gender composition of the Court of Justice and the General Court continues to be very unbalanced; expresses its appreciation of the letter from the President of the General Court to the President of the Conference of the Representatives of the Member States in 2024, calling on Member States to take the need for gender balance into account when nominating candidates for the replacement of Judges and Advocates General; renews its call on Member States to take the need for gender balance into account when nominating candidates for the replacement of Judges;Judges, while ensuring that nominations continue to be based on merit, qualification and independence criteria;

Change 15 under “2. MOTION FOR A EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT RESOLUTION”

Changed21.24. Notes that, in 2024, the staff of the CJEU was composed of 60,70 % women and 39,30 % men; notes that women representation was the highest in assistant grades (69,14 %), while regrettably it was the lowest in senior management positions (35,71 %); notes further an increase in the distribution of women in middle management positions from 43,33 % in 2023 to 51,61 % in 2024; notes with satisfaction from the management report of the authorising officer by delegation for 2024 an upward trend in the representation of women in management posts overall, from 37,50 % in 2018 to 48,70 % in 2024; stresses that the persistent under representation of women in senior management positions remains a concern and encourages the court to continue strengthening targeted measures aimed at supporting career progression and leadership pathways for women, in full respect of the principles of merit and transparency;

Change 16 under “2. MOTION FOR A EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT RESOLUTION”

Added25. Welcomes the creation of an action plan on the Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence (the ‘Istanbul Convention’) which aligns actions, makes recommendations and organises informative and training actions for all staff in order to prevent harassment cases; takes notes of further actions announced, which include continuing the collaboration with national organisations working in the field of preventing violence against women, additional awareness-raising initiatives and training sessions that highlight, in particular, the impact of microaggressions and gender-based bias; regrets, in this regard, the lack of mandatory training for members of the CJEU, as stated in the CJEU’s replies to the questionnaire for the 2024 discharge; urges therefore the inclusion of all individuals, both staff and members of the CJEU, into obligatory training sessions in the field of preventing violence against women;

Change 17 under “2. MOTION FOR A EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT RESOLUTION”

Changed23.27. Welcomes that all Union nationalities are represented in the staff of the CJEU; notes however that certain nationalities are more represented than others, whereas some of them are largely over-represented; supports CJEU in stepping up its efforts to advertise vacancy notices as widely as possible through interinstitutional websites, social media networks and EPSO; notes from the follow-up report the CJEU’s commitment to analyse relevant data for the implementation of targeted actions aiming at improving geographical representation among its staff including trainees; welcomes the CJEUCJEU’s efforts to raise awareness of the traineeship programmes among national administrations and permanent representations of underrepresented Member States; notes with satisfaction that for traineeships within the framework of the European Judicial Training Network (EJTN), the CJEU received in 2024 applications from three new Member States participating for the first time in its long-term training programme for national justice professionals;

Change 18 under “2. MOTION FOR A EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT RESOLUTION”

Changed24.28. Commends the CJEU’s actions in the field of (legal) multilingualism in 2024, such as the finalisation and launch of a website on multilingualism, the co-organisation of the first edition of a summer school together with other Union -institutions,institutions, the close collaboration with Member States to develop a pool of external expertise to address increases in translation volumes and to cover any language combinations, awareness-raising actions for the freelance market and a continued upgrade of procedures and skills on the use of digital tools (including AI-related) for translation;

Change 19 under “2. MOTION FOR A EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT RESOLUTION”

Changed25.29. Commends the CJEU for its actions to address staff recruitment challenges and promote Luxembourg among young graduates as a place to work; notes with appreciation the CJEU’s contribution to the setting up and implementation of a housing allowance paid with retroactive effect from 1 January 2025 to staff at lower grades, the preparation of EPSO competitions specifically targeting staff to be employed in Luxembourg, as well as information sessions and summer schools; encourages intensified cooperation with EPSO and other institutions to broaden the pool of qualified candidates and strengthen competitive selection processes in specialised fields; notes from the follow-up report that the CJEU piloted on behalf of the High Level Interinstitutional Group a project/survey to establish whether it would be feasible to contract rental services for temporary housing (i.e. for a maximum period of one year), at market price (or below) that would be paid directly by staff members; further notes that survey was successful and consequently the working group has submitted a service level agreement to the participating institutions to mandate the CJEU to conduct a real estate negotiation procedure with entities that have submitted suitable projects; invites the CJEU to keep the discharge authority informed of the follow-up on this matter;

Change 20 under “2. MOTION FOR A EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT RESOLUTION”

Changed27.31. Notes that in 2024 there were 1917 burnout cases documented, of which eight new cases reported in 2024 and nine cases reported in 2023, whereas staff concerned received professional support and guidance; notes with appreciation that, in 2024, the CJEU remained a frontrunner on initiatives that promote physical and mental wellbeing of staff and address burnout and psychosocial risks, such as consultations with a social worker or a psychologist, lectures on mindfulness and digital balance, specialised workshops and awareness-raising activities on health issues, first aid training sessions and the recruitment of two part-time psychologists; acknowledges the success regarding the use of flexible working arrangements, including CJEU’s teleworking scheme, ultimately striving for a better staff work-life balance;

Change 21 under “2. MOTION FOR A EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT RESOLUTION”

Changed29.33. Notes that, as requested in previous discharge recommendations, the new code of conduct (CoC) for officials and other servants of the CJEU reflecting the latter’s values and commitment to high ethical standards was adopted in March 2024;2024 and notes that the CoC includes provisions on conflict of interests, duty of loyalty, duty of confidentiality and discretion, outside activities, occupational activities after leaving the service and publications, provisions against harassment and also applies to seconded national experts and trainee judges hosted under the EJTN; notes with satisfaction that the CJEU has put in place measures to present and explain the CoC as widely as possible and to make the staff fully comprehend the new rules and the broader legal framework they are part of, and that training on the CoC and the rights and obligations of staff are mandatory for newcomers and highly recommended to all CJEU staff, whereas a total of 747561 persons (i.e. 32,8024,75 % of the CJEU’s total number of officials and agents) participated in such trainings in 2024; further notes that similar training had been also offered to new CJEU members of the CJEU in 2024; notes with appreciation the CJEU’s network of ‘confidential counsellors’ who assist staff members in case of harassment, as well as the talent management programme offered to high-potential administrators that covers, inter alia,ethicalalia, ethical leadership; encourages the CJEU to progressively strengthen the provision of training on the CoCto all staff members without exception, to ensure a shared understanding of ethical standards across the institution;

Change 22 under “2. MOTION FOR A EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT RESOLUTION”

Changed30.34. Notes that, further to the adoption of the code of conduct for members and former members of the CJEU, the declaration of interests of the members of the CJEU are published online to avoid any potential conflict of interest in the handling of cases; notes with satisfaction from the follow-up report that in 2024 the CJEU signed the agreement establishing the inter-institutional ‘EU Ethics Body’ that has, among its tasks, the drawing up of common minimum standards for the conduct of members of the signatory institutions; acknowledges that the CJEU retains observer status within that body in order to preserve the independence of the judiciary;

Change 23 under “2. MOTION FOR A EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT RESOLUTION”

Changed32.36. Notes from the follow-up report that the recusal policy of Judges in cases of actual or apparent conflict of interest is already mandatory and that the CJEU relies on a tested mechanism to prevent conflicts of interest, whereas that mechanism covers the process for selecting CJEU members of the CJEU and produces full effects when they take up their duties;

Change 24 under “2. MOTION FOR A EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT RESOLUTION”

Changed34.38. Notes that the list of external activities carried out by the members of both the Court of Justice and the General Court has been published on the CJEU website since 2018 and that such activities are only approved if they are compatible with the requirements of the code of conduct of CJEU’s members of the CJEU and with their obligations to be available for judicial activities; welcomes from the follow-up report the commitment of the CJEU to analyse the possibilities to improve the quality and readability of the published information related to external activities;

Change 25 under “2. MOTION FOR A EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT RESOLUTION”

Changed35.39. Recalls Parliament’s recommendation made in 2023 to all Union institutions to agree on a single system on the use of official vehicles to be applied horizontally; notes in this context and the follow-up report that in 2024 the CJEU, the Court, Parliament and the Commission have set up an interinstitutional working group aiming at exchanging information on respective practices and identifying avenues for harmonisation of the rules, while respecting the autonomy and specificities of each institution; recalls Parliament’s opinion that the use of car fleet outside of the strict performance of the duties of the Membersmembers of the CJEU should not take place under any circumstances; notes further from the follow-up report that the working group has performed a benchmarking on the issue and is looking into other subjects related to car-fleet management; calls on the working group to act swiftly on this matter and inform the discharge authority of the outcome of its work and conclusions as soon as possible;

Change 26 under “2. MOTION FOR A EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT RESOLUTION”

Changed37.41. Welcomes the CJEU’s engagement to enhance transparency, access to justice and public openness, thus contributing to foster public trust in the Union institutions, while balancing in other fundamental concerns such as judicial serenity, confidentiality of proceedings and protection of personal data; emphasises that increased transparency must also serve to strengthen public trust in the CJEU’s jurisprudence; encourages the CJEU to continue efforts to improve the clarity, accessibility and predictability of its case-law, particularly in cases with significant constitutional or societal impact; notes that, in 2024, the CJEU consolidated the streaming service for hearings of the Court of Justice and of the General Court on the Curia website, thus facilitating the access of citizens to the judicial activities of the CJEU; welcomes in this context, as a result of the judicial reform adopted in 2024, the increased transparency of the preliminary ruling procedure by allowing for the publication on the CJEU’s website of written observations within a reasonable time after the closure of the case;

Change 27 under “2. MOTION FOR A EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT RESOLUTION”

Changed38.42. Notes with satisfaction from the follow-up report that, following a successful pilot project launched in 2022 and the update of its RoP in 2024, the Court of Justice expanded the streaming service to include important cases heard by a Chamber of five Judges, as well as near-live-streaming of hearings of oral pleadings and live broadcasts of the delivery of judgments and of opinions of the Advocates General; notes further that since 1 September 2024 video recordings of hearings for the delivery of judgments and opinions remain permanently available on the CJEU’s website and video recordings of oral pleadings are accessible for one month after the hearing; notes with appreciation that the General Court has taken similar measures to ensure expanded access of the public to its proceedings;

Change 28 under “2. MOTION FOR A EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT RESOLUTION”

Changed43.47. Notes with interest the launch in 2024 of a pilot project providing all of the CJEU’s departments with access to AI assistants; underlines the importance of ensuring adherence to ethical principles when using AI tools and in particular to CJEU’s AI Guidelines adopted in 2024, thus ensuring human oversight in respect of the principle of independence of legal proceedings; underlines that the use of AI tools in a judicial environment must never replace human legal reasoning or judicial discretion, nor undermine the personal responsibility of judges; highlights in this context the supervisory role of CJEU’s AI Management Board; commends the CJEU for the comprehensive training programme it has put in place in 2024, starting with an “AI awareness month” that included training sessions, roundtables animated by AI experts, webinars and bootcamps, thus taking a first and important step towards creating awareness of staff members about the CJEU’s AI strategy, guidelines and AI in general; notes that staff members also follow courses on change management, knowledge transfer, mentoring, and mental agility to support adaptation to emerging technologies; invites the CJEU to continue organising such training and awareness programmes;

Change 29 under “2. MOTION FOR A EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT RESOLUTION”

Changed44.48. Notes from the Follow-upfollow-up report that, following the entry into force of the new Cybersecurity Regulation in early 2024, the CJEU established a cybersecurity action plan and is implementing related IT infrastructure projects; notes that the CJEU conducts at least three annual disaster recovery tests covering on-premise systems, telecommunication services, and internet provider failover;

Change 30 under “2. MOTION FOR A EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT RESOLUTION”

Changed45.49. Notes that cybersecurity operational capabilities were further strengthened in 2024 to comply with Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2023/2841 and to address the rising number of cyberattacks; observes that no major cyberattacks occurred in 2024; notes with concern that an average of 142 security incidents per month were recorded and analysed, some requiring human intervention; emphasise that cybersecurity is a strategic investment, essential to safeguarding judicial independence, data integrity and the continuity of judicial activity, underling therefore the need for sustained and predictable investment in cybersecurity capabilities, staff training and interinstitutional cooperation;

Change 31 under “2. MOTION FOR A EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT RESOLUTION”

Changed50.54. Commends the CJEU for its continued efforts and significant progress in reducing its environmental footprint in 2024, as demonstrated by its performance against the 2015 Eco-Management and Audit Scheme (EMAS) baseline with reductions per Full-Time Equivalent (FTE) achieved in many types of consumptions/emissions (heating: - 37,5 %; electricity: -29,3 %; paper: -64,2 %, office and canteen waste: -40,4 %; greenhouse gas emissions: -30,20-26,7 %); notes an overall improvement when compared to reductions reported for 2023; acknowledges that these results, combined with market conditions, led to an 18 % reduction in energy expenditure compared to forecasts; commends in this context the robust integration of sustainability into the Court’stheCJEU’s risk management and accountability framework, as required by its EMAS certification;

Change 32 under “2. MOTION FOR A EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT RESOLUTION”

Changed51.55. Welcomes the substantial investments in 2024 to enhance the energy efficiency of the CJEU's buildings, including nearly EUR 1,5 million for the widespread installation of LED lighting and over EUR 0, 4 million for building insulation works; notes with satisfaction that all purchased electricity came from renewable sources and that heating is supplied by a district system powered by biomass; welcomes the CJEUt'sCJEU's commitment to future-proofing its green energy supply through planned participation in Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs);

Change 33 under “2. MOTION FOR A EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT RESOLUTION”

Changed52.56. Commends the CJEU for its rigorous approach to sustainable procurement, through the categorisation of calls for tenders based on the impact (‘light green’, ‘medium green’, ‘top green’) of their environmental clauses, the systematic use of tools such as the mandatory 'green performance' self-assessment and the consultation of the interinstitutional SPP Helpdesk; notes that in 2024, eleveneight major tenders above EUR 60 000 were ‘green purchases’, eightsix of which incorporated significant environmental clauses; welcomes in particular the successful implementation of the new catering contract, which requires sustainable food practices and holds the ISO 14001 certification, and the achievement of the objective to limit 'light green' tenders to well below the 50 % target;

Change 34 under “2. MOTION FOR A EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT RESOLUTION”

Changed55.59. Notes the CJEU’s cooperation with other institutions and in particular the shared applications and hosting services based on service-level agreements (SLAs) with the Commission as well as the participation in interinstitutional procurement procedures, which have allowed the CJEU to optimise costs and resources; acknowledges the importance of the interinstitutional cooperation of CJEU with CERT-EUCybersecurity Service for the Union institutions, bodies, offices and ENISA,agencies (CERT-EU) and European Union Agency for Cybersecurity (ENISA), including participation in Technical Advisory Groups on tools, methodologies, and awareness, as well as in CERT-EU’s generative AI initiative;

Change 35 under “2. MOTION FOR A EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT RESOLUTION”

Changed59.61. Appreciates that the CJEU fully cooperates with European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF), the Court, the EDPS and the European Ombudsman; takes note of CJEU’s partnership with EJTN which helps the CJEU in its work towards fostering common judicial culture across the EU,Union, ensuring the consistent and uniform application of Union law in all Member States and strengthening mutual trust between national judiciaries and the CJEU; appreciates in this context the organisation of annual meetings with correspondents of national courts, thematic groups, webinars and visits of CJEU representatives to national courts and vice versa; notes in particular for 2024 the annual meeting of the EJTN correspondents which took place in Brussels, the visit to Warsaw by a delegation from the General Court, as well as the annual meeting of Judges with a special conference held at the CJEU to mark the 20th anniversary of the 2004 enlargement; notes further from the follow-up report that in 2024 a higher number of Judges attended seminars and national justice professionals from three new Member States submitted their applications for the first time for CJEU’s long-term training programmes;

Change 36 under “2. MOTION FOR A EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT RESOLUTION”

Changed62.64. Notes that, in 2024, the CJEU strengthened its efforts to engage with Union citizens by enhancing its outreach on social media; notes that, at the end of 2024, the number of subscribers to the CJEU’s LinkedIn account increased by 26 % and the number of followers on the CJEU’s two accounts on X (formerly Twitter) by 2,5 %,while the views on its YouTube channel increased by 236137 % and the number of its YouTube subscribers increased by more than 400329 % compared to the previous year; notes that the parabolic increase in views and subscribers was partly due to a promotional campaign organised by the CJEU;