The average duration of proceedings in the European Court of Justice (ECJ) fell in 2006 to its lowest mark for over a decade – although the average length of cases at the Court of First Instance rose by 8%.
According to statistics released this week by the ECJ, the average length of proceedings in the Court of Justice in 2006 was 19.8 months – down from 20.4 months for the previous year.
The drop continues a trend that has seen the average length of proceedings drop from 25.5 months in 2003, while the length of appeals fell from 20.9 months in 2005 to 17.8 months.
The number of cases completed in 2006 dropped 5% to 546 from a mark of 574 for the previous 12-months period, although cases brought to the court increased by 13.3% to 537.
Proceedings at the Court of First Instance, however, increased on average from 25.6 months in 2005 to 27.8 in 2006. The number of cases completed fell by 29% to 436.
The Civil Service Tribunal, meanwhile, saw a decrease in the number of actions brought against it in its first full year of operation – down from 161 in 2005 to 148 in 2006. Fifty-three cases were brought to a close.
