ABSTRACT
Union law places rights and obligations on individuals, Member States and European Union (EU) Institutions alike. European Union law would, however, have little effect if such rights and obligations were unenforceable, and so the Union’s legal system includes a variety of means by which it can be ensured that all comply with European law. While domestic courts are normally used to enforce EU law rights, there are certain actions that only the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) has jurisdiction to hear. Art 258 Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) gives the Commission the authority to investigate, and if necessary bring before the CJEU any Member State which it considers may have failed to fulfil its EU obligations. Art 263 TFEU is the primary method by which the legality of the acts of the Union’s Institutions may be challenged.
