An introduction to the common European asylum system for courts and tribunals : judicial analysis

This judicial analysis is the product of a project between IARLJ-Europe and EASO and it forms part of the EASO professional development series for members of courts and tribunals. The analysis is primarily intended for use by members of courts and tribunals of EU Member States concerned with hearing appeals or conducting reviews of decisions on applications for international protection. It aims to assist not only those with little or no experience but also those who have more expertise. As such, it aims to be a useful point of reference for all members of courts and tribunals concerned in the hearing of cases or actions to which the CEAS applies. The structure, format, content and design have, therefore, been developed with this broad audience in mind. The analysis is designed to provide an introduction to the CEAS that assists courts and tribunals in the carrying out of their role and responsibilities in its implementation. It provides: an overview of the legal basis of the CEAS, including a short background to its establishment; an introductory overview of the CEAS legislative instruments; an introduction to the correct approach as a matter of EU law to interpretation of the legislative provisions of the CEAS, including the important topic of when and how to make referral to the CJEU for an interpretative ruling. The analysis is supported by a compilation of jurisprudence and appendices having a specific bearing on the CEAS. They list not only relevant EU primary and secondary legislation and relevant international treaties of universal and regional scope but also essential case-law of the CJEU, the ECtHR and the courts and tribunals of EU Member States. To ensure that the relevant legislation and case-law is easily and quickly accessible to readers, hyperlinks have been utilised. Other analyses, which have been or are being developed as part of the professional development series, explore specific areas of the CEAS in greater detail. Hence, the sections in Part 2 which provide an overview of the CEAS legislative instruments are kept relatively short. This analysis, therefore, also constitutes a common point of reference for all judicial analyses comprising the professional development series.