European Court rules that Spain’s amnesty law does not violate EU law

Ane Barcos The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) issued its ruling this Thursday on the Spanish amnesty law passed in June 2024, concluding that it does not contravene EU law. The court considers that Spain, as a member state, has the power to approve such measures. However, it notes that the application of the national law cannot impede the effective application of EU law or the functioning of the system of judicial cooperation between national courts and the Court of Justice of the European Union. The President of the Court of Justice, Koen Lenaerts, stated that granting an amnesty falls, in principle, within the competence of member states. In this regard, the court considers that EU law "does not preclude the law granting amnesty" passed by Spain, since it is the responsibility of the national legislature to adopt such a measure. The court explained that European oversight of a national amnesty law does not consist of assessing its political expediency, but rather of verifying whether its effects could affect essential principles of the Union's legal order. According to Lenaerts, the Court of Justice's intervention is limited to situations that present "a systemic character that could jeopardize the proper functioning of the national judicial system." The ruling deems the Spanish law compatible with the Directive on combating terrorism, understanding that the law merely establishes that certain terrorist offenses committed exclusively within the specific context of the Catalan independence movement will not be prosecuted, with the exception of acts that have intentionally caused serious human rights violations. The Court of Justice notes that, "in line with its objectives of reducing institutional and political tensions and facilitating a scenario of reconciliation, this law merely provides, subsequently, that certain terrorist offenses committed exclusively within the particular context of the movement in favor of Catalan independence will not be prosecuted." However, the CJEU emphasizes that the amnesty law must not render the preliminary ruling procedure ineffective, a procedure through which national courts can request an interpretation of EU law from the Court of Justice. Lenaerts explained that the two-month maximum period stipulated in the law for courts to issue a decision on extinguishing liability cannot be applied in a way that compels them to rule before the CJEU responds when a preliminary question is pending. According to the President of the Court, if applying this time limit would prevent waiting for the Court of Justice's decision and render the preliminary ruling procedure ineffective, the provisions that would produce that result "must be discarded." The Court of Justice also ruled out the possibility that the amnesty for financial liability arising from the Catalan independence process could affect the financial interests of the European Union. According to the CJEU, the possible decrease in the gross national income of a Member State as a consequence of a possible territorial secession cannot, in itself, be considered an infringement of those interests.

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