Keywords
Summary

Keywords

Preliminary rulings - Jurisdiction of the Court - Limits - Manifestly irrelevant questions and questions regarding hypothetical problems in a context which precludes any useful answer - Questions not related to the purpose of the main proceedings - Court's lack of jurisdiction

(EC Treaty, Art. 177)

Summary

The Court cannot give a preliminary ruling where it is quite obvious that the interpretation of Community law sought by a national court bears no relation to the actual facts of the main action or to its purpose, or where the problem is hypothetical and the Court does not have before it the factual or legal material necessary to give a useful answer to the questions submitted to it.

That is the case where questions concerning the interpretation of general principles which form part of Community law have no relation to the purpose of the main action.