Finishing, refining, polishing: on the use of travaux préparatoires as an aid to the interpretation of Community legislation

Article abstract:

This article studies the use by the Court of Justice and the Court of First Instance of legislative history and travaux préparatoires as an aid to the interpretation of Community legislation. It is argued that the importance of legislative history has grown significantly in recent years owing to changes in the nature of the Community system of governance, the increasing detail of Community regulation and improvements in the quality of Community travaux préparatoires. More specifically, it is examined how frequently and in what areas of Community law preparatory documents are cited, what type of material is generally relied upon, in what circumstances it is referred to, and to what effect it is used. The results of that inquiry are then assessed in the light of the competing requirements of fidelity to legislative intent and legal certainty.