Order — ECLI:EU:C:2010:680
Date: 2010-11-12
Language of the case: Bulgarian
Court formation: Eighth Chamber
Subject matter: Principles, objectives and tasks of the Treaties
Procedure: Reference for a preliminary ruling - inadmissible
Origin: Bulgaria

Summary of the Order Preliminary rulings – Jurisdiction of the Court – Limits – Request for interpretation of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union (Art. 6(1) TEU; Art. 267 TFEU; Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, Art. 51(1)) When proceedings are brought before it under Article 267 TFEU, the Court of Justice is to have jurisdiction to give preliminary rulings on the interpretation of the TFEU as well as on the validity and interpretation of acts of the institutions of the Union. The jurisdiction of the Court is confined to considering provisions of Union law only. Under Article 51(1) of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union (‘the Charter’), its provisions are addressed to the Member States only when they are implementing Union law. Moreover, according to Article 6(1) TEU, which gives a binding nature to the Charter, and according to the declaration on the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union annexed to the final act of the intergovernmental conference which adopted the Treaty of Lisbon, the Charter neither establishes nor modifies any power of the Union. Consequently, the Court clearly has no jurisdiction to rule on the questions referred concerning the interpretation of the provisions of the Charter, given that the order for reference contains no concrete element allowing the Court to consider that the national decision in question would either constitute a measure implementing Union law or present other elements linked to Union law. (see paras 11-12, 14-15, operative part)