Orlando Scarcello
Case C-792/22, Parchetul de pe lângă Judecătoria Rupea and Others v. MG, Judgment of the Court (First Chamber) of 26 September 2024, ECLI:EU:C:2024:788.
The Energotehnica judgment (C-792/22) reaffirms the primacy of EU law over national constitutional court rulings, explicitly declaring Romania’s Constitutional Court decision on the binding force of administrative findings in criminal proceedings incompatible with EU law. The Court emphasized the right to effective judicial protection under Article 47 of the Charter, invalidating procedural practices excluding parties from critical administrative proceedings. Additionally, the judgment addressed whether Romanian judges could face disciplinary sanctions for disapplying national constitutional decisions to uphold EU law, confirming that such sanctions violate EU principles. This ruling strengthens fair trial standards and judicial independence within the EU legal order.
