Conseil d'État,
 in Italy: la Corte Suprema di Cassazione,
 in Luxembourg: la Cour supérieure de Justice, when sitting as Cour de Cassation,
 in the Netherlands: de Hoge Raad;
 2.
 the courts of the Contracting States when they are sitting in an appellate capacity;
 3.
 in the cases provided for in Article 37 of the Convention, the courts referred to in that Article.
 Article 3
 (1) Where a question of interpretation of the Convention or of one of the other instruments referred to in Article 1 is raised in a case pending before one of the courts listed in Article 2 (1), that court shall, if it considers that a decision on the question is necessary to enable it to give judgment, request the Court of Justice to give a ruling thereon.
 (2) Where such a question is raised before any court referred to in Article 2 (2) or (3), that court may, under the conditions laid down in paragraph 1, request the Court of Justice to give a ruling thereon.
 Article 4
 (1) The competent authority of a Contracting State may request the Court of Justice to give a ruling on a question of interpretation of the Convention or of one of the other instruments referred to in Article 1 if judgments given by courts of that State conflict with the interpretation given either by the Court of Justice or in a judgment of one of the courts of another Contracting State referred to in Article 2 (1) or (2). The provisions of this paragraph shall apply only to judgments which have been res judicata.
 (2) The interpretation given by the Court of Justice in response to such a request shall not affect the judgments which gave rise to the request for interpretation.
 (3) The Procurators-General of the Courts of Cassation of the Contracting States, or any other authority designated by a Contracting State, shall be entitled to request the Court of Justice for a ruling on interpretation in accordance with paragraph 1.
 (4) The Registrar of the Court of Justice shall give notice of the request to the Contracting States, to the Commission and to the Council of the European Communities; they shall then be entitled within two months of the notification to submit statements of case or written observations to the Court.
 (5) No fees shall be levied or any costs or expenses awarded in respect of the proceedings provided for in this Article.
 Article 5
 (1) Except where this Protocol otherwise provides, the provisions of the Treaty establishing the European Economic Community and those of the Protocol on the Statute of the Court of Justice annexed thereto, which are applicable when the Court is requested to give a preliminary ruling, shall also apply to any proceedings for the interpretation of the Convention and the other instruments referred to in Article 1.
 (2) The Rules of Procedure of the Court of Justice shall, if necessary, be adjusted and supplemented in accordance with Article 188 of the Treaty establishing