Trusted by the judiciary, government lawyers, prosecutors, and many leading counsel. Click here to request a subscription.
Trusted by the judiciary, government lawyers, prosecutors, and many leading counsel.
Click here to request a subscription.
Request for EU ruling clarified as court finds declaratory relief remains ‘live’ after development approval
|
or click here to request site subscription to search and view all judgments |
The High Court issued an addendum to a previous request for a preliminary ruling to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU), clarifying procedural matters after considering observations from the European Commission. The court emphasised that, although the permission for development at issue was final and could not be quashed, the proceedings were not moot because declaratory relief—confirming whether there was a breach of EU environmental law—remained 'live'. The court explained that under Irish law, a declaration about a breach may still be granted even where coercive relief (such as quashing an authorisation) is no longer available, and pointed to similar Irish and European case law to support the ongoing relevance of the request for a preliminary ruling. The addendum will be transmitted to the CJEU to aid its consideration of the questions referred.
declaratory relief – preliminary ruling – addendum – judicial review – planning permission – res judicata – Irish law – European Commission – Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) – Directive 92/43 – Directive 2009/147 – declaration as to breach – Planning and Development Act 2000 – Rules of the Superior Courts (RSC)
Note: This is intended to be a fair and accurate report of a decision made public by a court of law. Any errors should be notified to the editor and will be dealt with accordingly.
