The 1st of October brings the TW case to the oral stage.
- Oral stage/public hearing. Lawyers from both sides can put their case to the judges and Advocate General, who can question them.
- Judgment stage: If the Court has decided an Opinion of the Advocate General is necessary, this is given some weeks after the hearing. The judges then deliberate and give their verdict.
- General Court procedure is similar, except that 3 judges hear most cases and there are no Advocates General.
What is the current situation of the TW legal case?
We have submitted our written observations, received written observations from the institutions and member states. We have the court date of 1st October at 2:30 pm; our case is to be heard by 5 of the judges.
This is when Totally Wicked’s Barrister orally submits TW’s case against Article 20 of the TPD.
He will only have 20 minutes in which to do this.
The EU institutions, and 2 member states are contesting TW’s case, and they will have 15 minutes each.
We will not obtain a decision on the day; it is likely that the Advocate General will prepare an opinion for the court later this year, followed by a decision in the early part of 2016.