It has no legislative power, but must be consulted on matters relating to certain economic and social issues.

Court of Justice

The final arbiter in all matters of EU law is the Court of Justice. The court is composed of 15 judges and nine advocates general who are appointed to six-year terms, with at least one from each member country. The court deals with disputes between member governments and EU institutions and among EU institutions, and with appeals against EC rulings or decisions. Courts of the member states often refer cases involving an unclear point of EU law to the Court of Justice. The court makes binding rulings on EU law to help guide the rulings of national courts. The rulings of the Court of Justice set legal precedents and become part of the legal framework of each member state.

History

World War II devastated the economy of Europe. Some Europeans hoped that the reconstruction of western Europe would result in an agreement to create a unified European state. But the idea of a unified Europe was undermined by the beginning of the Cold War and lingering suspicions of West Germany (now part of the united Federal Republic of Germany). Two French statesmen-Jean Monnet and Robert Schuman-believed that France and Germany might put aside their long-running antagonism if given economic incentives for cooperation. In May 1950 Schuman proposed the creation of a common authority to regulate the coal and steel industry in West Germany and France; membership was also open to other western European countries. The proposal was welcomed by the West German government and by the governments of Belgium, Italy, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands. Along with France, the five countries signed the Treaty of Paris in 1951, and the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) was established in August 1952. The British government opposed the supranational nature of the planned ECSC and decided not to join.
In June 1955 the foreign ministers of the six nations in the ECSC agreed to examine the possibilities for further economic integration. This new effort resulted in the two Treaties of Rome of March 1957, which created the European Economic Community (EEC) and the European Atomic Energy Community (Euratom). The latter proved to be of little importance because each national government kept control of its nuclear power programmes.

European Economic Community

Economically, the EEC treaty mandated, over a 12-year period, the elimination of trade barriers among member nations, the development of a common tariff for imports from the rest of the world, and the creation of a common policy for managing and supporting agriculture.