About the Legal Service
Activities of the Legal Service
- The Commission’s legal adviser
- The Commission’s legal representative
- Helping to improve the quality of drafting of Community legislation
Case law
Speeches
Documents
Vacancies
List of seminars on quality of legislation organised by the
Commission Legal Revisers Group
Quality of legislation - Poland |
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9 December 2011 |
10.00 to 13.00 hrs |
Alcide de
Gasperi room (GASP), Charlemagne building, |
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Available documents: presentation |
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Quality of legislation - Hungary |
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22 June 2011 |
09.15 to 13.00 hrs |
Alcide de Gasperi room (GASP), Charlemagne building, Rue de la loi, Brussels |
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Quality of legislation - Transparency and the Judicial Process of the EU: Making the System Work Better |
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11 October 2010 |
10.15 to 12.30 hrs |
Alcide de
Gasperi room (GASP), Charlemagne building, |
Lecturer: Eleanor Sharpston, Advocate General at the Court of Justice of the European Union |
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Quality of legislation - The interpretation of EU law in a context of political, social and cultural pluralism |
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12 June 2009 |
12.00 to 13.00 hrs |
Alcide de
Gasperi room (S3), Charlemagne building, |
Lecturer: Prof. Poiares Maduro, Advocate General at the European
Court of Justice |
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Quality of legislation - Views from the Czech Republic |
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30 January 2009 |
Participants: some 200 |
Duration: 4 hours |
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Introduction by Dr Pavel Svoboda, Minister of the Government,
Chairman of the Legislative Council, who stressed the importance of
legislation and lawmaking to a democratic society. He pointed out that
the legitimacy of laws depends on the approval process and, in the light
of developments in EU procedures, concluded that charges of a democratic
deficit can no longer be levelled against the EU. Text 
.
Dr Jan Kysela, Professor at Charles University, Secretary of the
Standing Senate Commission on the Constitution and Parliamentary
Procedures and member of the Working Commission on Administrative Law of
the Legislative Council, spoke on the quality of law-making in the Czech
Republic, which he described as a never-ending story of trials and
setbacks. He emphasised the need for rules to guarantee quality and for
mechanisms to enforce respect of those rules. It is no easy matter to
maintain the consistency and stability of laws, particularly with the
current high volume of new legislation. Speaking notes
and slides .
Dr Jakub Camrda, Judge of the Supreme Administrative Court, gave a
judicial perspective on the quality of Community and national
legislation. He recalled that Czech judges had first had to familiarise
themselves with EU law and the European Court of Justice's approach to
interpreting it, including the need to look at different language
versions and to read between the lines. Law is growing in complexity,
partly because of its increasingly polycentric nature. It is a challenge
to maintain legal certainty and ensure that law is foreseeable for users
in the face of a "legislative typhoon" from the EU. Text .
Dr Markéta Whelanová, Deputy Director of the Department for
Compatibility with EC Law, the Office of the Government, explained how
EU law is implemented in the Czech legal order and discussed some of the
problems that arise. The task of implementing EU law is decentralised
but the Department for Compatibility with EC Law coordinates the work.
It has issued Methodical Instructions for the organisation of work when
meeting the legislative obligations ensuing from the membership of the
Czech Republic in the EU and seeks to ensure that those instructions are
followed. The piecemeal nature of much of EU legislation poses problems
because of the multiplicity of acts in one sector and dangers of
inconsistency. Particular aspects of drafting technique that need
attention include consistent use of terminology, identifying clearly the
scope of acts in the articles (not the recitals) and the careful use of
references to other provisions or other acts. Slides .
Mr Jaroslav Šuchman, Head of the European Union Unit, Foreign Relations
Department of the Senate Chancellery, explained national parliaments'
involvement in the making of EU law and argued that it served to prevent
the breaking of EU law. The participation of the parliaments of the
Member States in EU law making was first recognised in the Amsterdam
Treaty Protocol on the role of the national parliaments in the EU but a
major step forward was the "Barroso Initiative" of September 2006 under
which the Commission sends all its legislative proposals and
communication documents directly to all national parliaments for their
reactions. The feedback enables the Commission to take account of
national views in its proposals, which may improve the quality of the
laws themselves and certainly means that they are easy to implement and
that they gain greater acceptance. Speaking notes
and slides .
Quality of legislation - Views from Slovenia |
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25 January 2008 |
Participants: some 160 |
Duration: 4 hours |
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Introduction by Mr Janez Potočnik, Member of the
European Commission, who stressed the importance of high-quality
legislation. Inherent in the EU's Better Regulation programme is a
change of culture to ensure that all the factors essential to good
regulation are taken into account.
Dr Janez Pogorelec, Director of the Government Service
for Legislation, explained the Slovenian approach to quality of
legislation, putting it in its historical context. He referred to the
challenge of integrating EU law and national law.
Slides
Ms Barbara Vrečko, Head of Division for European
affairs and the Computerisation of Legislative Procedures in the
Government Service for Legislation, explained the harmonisation and
transposition process in Slovenia. Extensive use is made of an
electronic database and electronic transmission systems to make the
process effective and efficient.
Slides
Ms Katarina Kralj, Senior Legal Adviser in the
Legislative and Legal Service of the National Assembly, set out the role
of that service. Its duties include: giving opinions on draft laws,
revising parliamentary amendments, verifying the final texts of laws,
and producing consolidated texts of laws that have been amended.
Slides
Ms Renata Zatler, Head of Department for Public
Administration Process and Reducing Administrative Burdens in the
Ministry of Public Administration, emphasised the importance of
communication with stakeholders in reducing administrative burdens and
simplifying legislation. A key element in the Slovenian process is the
involvement of business, of external experts and of the citizen. A
programme is under way to identify and reduce administrative burdens
resulting from legislation, in particular from gold-plating of EU rules.
Slides
Quality of legislation - Views from Switzerland |
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19 October 2007 |
Participants: some 200 |
Duration: 4 hours |
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Introduction by Manuela Guggeis, Head of the Legal Revisers Group in the Legal Service of the Council of the European Union, who outlined the new approach being taken in the Council to the challenge of improving the quality of European legislation.
Professor Georg Müller, Zurich University, spoke of the general principles of legislation and the crucial importance of a methodical approach to its preparation.
Text 
Professor Alexandre Flückiger, Geneva University, traced the historical roots of the study of legislative technique in Switzerland and emphasised the concern for laws to be clear and accessible to all.
Text 
Marcus Nußbaumer, Head of the Linguistic Service in the Federal Chancellery, explained the Swiss approach to multilingual drafting and the role of the administrative drafting committee. He also gave examples of problems resulting from incorporating European legislation in Swiss law.
Luzius Mader, Deputy Director in the Federal Ministry of Justice, showed the various forms in which legislation is published in Switzerland and gave details of the project to update Swiss federal legislation.
Quality of legislation - Views from Portugal |
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28 June 2007 |
Participants: some 175 |
Duration: 3 hours |
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Introduction by Dr Mário Tenreiro, Head of the
Institutional Issues Unit in the Secretariat General of the European
Commission, who spoke of the particular challenge of maintaining the
quality of European legislation which has to be adapted to different
cultures and acceptable to 27 Member States.
Dr António Duarte de Almeida, Principal Adviser at the
Centre for Legal Studies in the Presidency of the Council of Ministers
in Portugal, traced the various stages in the legislative process in
Portugal and explained the formal requirements in place. He drew
comparisons with the EU codecision procedure.
Dr Alexandre Sousa Pinheiro, Principal Adviser at the
Centre for Legal Studies in the Presidency of the Council of Ministers
in Portugal explained the work being undertaken in Portugal to simplify
and codify legislation to make it more accessible and to reduce
administrative burdens. It is first necessary to take stock of existing
legislation and categorise it before steps can be taken to condense it.
Dr André Miranda, Deputy to the State Secretary for the
Presidency of the Council of Ministers in Portugal explained the history
and content of the Portuguese Better Law-Making Programme. Major efforts
have recently been initiated to reform radically all aspects of the
legislative process.
Quality of legislation - German views |
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30 March 2007 |
Participants: over 200 |
Duration: 3.5 hours |
Programme |
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Introduction by Prof. Dr. Klaus-Dieter Borchardt,
Deputy Head of Cabinet of Commissioner Fischer Boel, who mentioned in
particular the conclusions of the European Council on Better Regulation,
the problems specific to Community legislation and the work to simplify
agricultural legislation. Speaking notes
Ministerialdirigent Dr. Erich Milleker, Head of the
Better Regulation Task Force in the Federal Ministry of the Interior,
traced the history of efforts to improve regulation in Germany, focusing
on the role of regulatory review and impact assessments. He pointed out
that, after a comparatively late start, Better Regulation was now being
given high priority in Germany.
Text
Ministerialdirigent Dr. Klaus Abmeier, Head of
Directorate IVa in Directorate-General IV: Constitutional and
Administrative Law; International and European Law in the Federal
Ministry of Justice, explained how the Ministry of Justice contributed
to good drafting and simplification of legislation in Germany. He showed
all the structures that are in place but stressed that producing good
legislation always required enough time.
Text
and slides
Regierungsrat Dr. Dominik Böllhoff, of the Regulatory
Reform Unit in the Federal Chancellery, emphasised the value of
exchanging views and ensuring transparency to forging an
interdisciplinary approach to Better Regulation and reducing
bureaucracy. Measurement of administrative costs is a key tool in acting
effectively. Presentation
Make it simple and understandable – Finnish views on the quality of law drafting |
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26 October 2006 |
Participants: some 240 |
Duration: 3.5 hours |
Introduction by Mr Karl-Johan Lönnroth, Director General of the
Commission Translation DG:
"Quality of Law and Translation: a common cause".
Presentation
Mr Pekka Nurmi, Director General and Head of the Law Drafting Department
in the Ministry of Justice, recalled the influence of history on the
role of law in Finland where traditionally legislators adopt clear laws
which command respect by the citizens. Recent focus on Better Regulation
has led to closer coordination of the legislative process, with the
Ministry of Justice providing drafting training and guidance and greater
emphasis on broad consultation and conduct of impact assessments.
Presentation
Bill Drafting Instructions (HELO) (English version)
Ms Kirsi Pimiä, Counsel to the Grand Committee and the Foreign Affairs
Committee of the Parliament, explained the system of parliamentary
scrutiny of legislation. For draft EU measures the system ensures that
the government does not commit itself before Parliament can take a
position. Records and documents are rapidly made available to the public
on the Internet. Presentation
Booklet on Parliamentary scrutiny
Ms Aino Piehl, Senior researcher at the Research Institute for the
Languages of Finland, traced the role of the institute in drawing up
rules and guidance on language use. In Finland particular emphasis is
laid on making legal language understandable and linguists have made a
substantial contribution to that goal.
Presentation
Quality of legislation: Legislative drafting in Spain |
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9 June 2006 |
Participants: 279 |
Duration: 3.5 hours |
Introduction by Ms Claire-Françoise Durand, Deputy Director-General of
the Commission Legal Service: “What is meant by quality of legislation and better regulation?”
Professor Miquel Martín Casals, of the University of Girona, President
of the Legislative Drafting Study Group (GRETEL), traced the history of
legislative drafting in Spain over the last 20 years and explained the
role of the Guidelines for legislative drafting and checklists.
Dr Emilio Jiménez Aparicio, former Director General of the Legal
Services and Abogado del Estado, looked at legislative drafting tools
and the lawmaking process in Spain. The quality of first drafts is very
important because later in the legislative process it becomes more
difficult to make changes for the sake of improving technical quality.
Dr Francisco Caamaño Domínguez, Secretary of State for relations with
the Congress and Senate and Professor of Constitutional Law spoke of the
link between the quality of legislative acts and governance. Government
has responsibility for giving adequate information about its laws and
ensuring that the lawmaking process is transparent. Laws must be framed
in clear and accessible language and well structured to serve as a
channel of communication with the citizen.
Quality of legislation: Estonian perspectives |
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11 October 2005 |
Participants: 251 |
Duration: 3.5 hours |
Introduction by Mr Siim Kallas, Vice-President of the Commission
Dr Julia Laffranque, Judge of the Supreme Court, spoke of Estonia’s
experiences as a Member State in transposing, applying and interpreting
Community law. She highlighted the importance of good legislation and
mentioned some of the problems encountered by Estonian courts in
interpreting Community legislation.
Ms Karmen Vilms, Head of the Legislative Drafting Bureau in the Ministry
of Justice, explained how Estonia makes sure that its legislation is of
good quality. The process involves close consultation of all interested
circles and work by lawyers and linguists under the coordination of the
Ministry of Justice. The involvement of linguists in the process
underlines the importance attached to language matters.
Mr Aare Kasemets, adviser at the Environment Ministry, traced the
development of the concern for better regulation back to the 1970s.
Presentation
The application of Community law: Challenges facing a common-law system |
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2 July 2004 |
Participants: 289 |
Duration: 3.5 hours |
Ms Anne Lambert, UK Deputy Permanent Representative, put improving the
quality of Community legislation in the context of efforts to promote
Better Regulation and introduced the four Presidencies’ Joint Initiative
on Regulatory Reform.
Mr Philip Bovey, Legal Director at the Department of Trade and Industry,
considered whether it is more difficult for a common-law system to apply
Community law. Drawing on a report produced for the UK Foreign Office in
2003, he compared the approach to legislative drafting in the UK with
the way Community legislation is drafted and looked at different
approaches to implementing Community directives.
Outline of the talk
Lady Justice Arden, of the Court of Appeal, considered the English
courts’ approach to interpreting domestic and European legislation and
its evolution. Citing problems caused by poor drafting, she stressed the
importance of producing a clear text that does not need to be litigated.
Quality of EC legislation and ways to improve it |
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25 November 2003 |
Participants: 106 |
Duration: 3.5 hours |
Introduction by Professor Pieter-Jan Kuiper, Principal Legal Adviser in
the Commission Legal Service
Professor Dr Wim Voermans, professor in constitutional and
administrative law at the University of Leiden, spoke in English on
“Quality of EC legislation and ways to improve it”. He looked at the
standards for good legislation and the problems resulting from bad
legislation and considered remedial measures taken in the Netherlands
and in Europe, focusing in particular on training.
Presentation
Mr. Willem Konijnenbelt, President of section at the Raad van State and
professor at the University of Amsterdam, spoke in French on “What is
legislative quality about: universal standards for good legislation”. He
analysed the formal and substantive criteria for the quality of
legislation, drawing in part on research in the Netherlands but also on
materials from other countries.
How to interpret legislation which is equally authentic in twenty languages |
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20 October 2003 |
Participants: 250 |
Duration: 1.5 hours |
Introduction by Mr Frank Benyon, Principal Legal Adviser in the
Commission Legal Service
Advocate General Francis Jacobs of the European Court of Justice (ECJ)
spoke of the ECJ’s approach to interpreting Community legislation. He
analysed the particular features of that legislation, which is
multilingual and the product of a complex negotiation process, and
described how the ECJ’s methods of interpretation address the
difficulties that arise.
La qualité de la législation: l’expérience canadienne |
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23 October 2002 |
Participants: 80 |
Duration: 3.5 hours |
Introduction by Mr Giuliano Marenco, Deputy Director-General of the
Commission Legal Service
Mr André Labelle, head of the Jurilinguists Service in the Canadian
Ministry of Justice, spoke on the legislative drafting process in
Canada, in particular codrafting in two languages, involving both legal
drafters and jurilinguists. The quality of drafting is safeguarded by a
range of political and legal rules and language guidance. Text
and slides
Summary report
Quality of legislation: The Swedish view |
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27 September 2002 |
Participants: 120 |
Duration: 3.5 hours |
Introduction by Mr Giuliano Marenco, Deputy Director-General of the
Commission Legal Service
Mr Gustaf Sandström, Judge of the Supreme Administrative Court in Sweden
and Member of the Council on Legislation, gave his view on Community
legislation from his experiences as a judge hearing many cases involving
Community legislation, as chairman of a Council Working group, as
reviser of draft acts in the Swedish Council on Legislation and as a
drafter of legislation in the Ministry of Finance.
Mrs Barbro Ehrenberg-Sundin, Senior Adviser in the Division for Legal
and Linguistic Draft Revision at the Swedish Ministry of Justice and a
member of the Working Party on Clear Language, spoke on the Swedish
legislative process and the role of her Division in that process as well
as in offering linguistic support to staff in the Community institutions
and to Swedish officials in Community working groups. She also reported
on Sweden’s views on the Community’s efforts to improve its legislation
and explained what the Plain Swedish Group does.
Text
Last updated on 30.01.2012
