Review Confined to Points of Law

Abstract

The key characteristic specific to appeals before the Court of Justice (ECJ) is that review is confined to points of law. The Court has no jurisdiction to review the findings of fact or the assessment of the facts. This chapter describes how such a rule was adopted and how it is applied. Since its earliest days as an appellate court, the Court has reviewed the legal characterisation of facts and checked for distortion. It also reviews certain rules relating to evidence, the reasons stated for decisions and the grounds of judgments under appeal. Additionally, this chapter analyses the Court’s review in relation to fines in competition cases, to national law and to contracts. The conclusion reached is that the review confined to points of law limits the jurisdiction of the Court but that it can still review important parts of the General Court’s decision.