Jurisdiction(s):
European Union

Enforcing EU law in national courts: direct and indirect effect (vertical and horizontal), state liability, limits and reparation

Published by a LexisNexis EU Law expert

Practice notes

Judicial enforcement of EU law

Alongside the enforcement tools available to EU institutions via the EU infringement procedure—such as referring matters to the Court of Justice of the European Union—there exist a number of judge-made principles, devised by the Court of Justice of the European Union, to secure the application of EU law within Member States. Put differently, when EU law is not observed, individuals have access to remedies.

These principles, which fall within what is commonly termed the judicial enforcement of EU law, are:

direct effect
indirect effect
state liability

Their evolution occurred chiefly through the preliminary ruling mechanism, a framework through which national courts of the Member States co-operate and engage in dialogue with the Court of Justice of the European Union so as to achieve a harmonised interpretation of EU law. For further reading, see Practice Note: References to the Court of Justice of the European Union—the system of preliminary rulings.

Whenever persons are affected by failures to comply with provisions of EU law, they may bring proceedings before their national courts to secure the protection of rights conferred on them by EU law, and to seek the interpretation of domestic legislation in light...

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Laura Bolado

Laura worked in EU law for over two decades making it one her main area of expertise. In 2002 she worked for the European Commission (Brussels) and relocated to London in 2003 to work for the European Medicines Agency. There she gained first-hand experience on the functioning of the EU which she later applied in legal roles at pharmaceutical companies and law firms before turning to a more generalist approach to EU law at LexisNexis. At LexisNexis she helped develop and maintain EU Tracker (writing on the implementation of EU Directives in different EU jurisdictions, etc.) and assisted various departments with EU law matters in her EU Law Specialist capacity. Laura also delivered EU law training to several interns and legal professionals. Laura left LexisNexis in late 2013 to explore her options in different environments. In 2014 Laura lectured EU law at...

Web page updated on 21/05/2026

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