§ Mr. MarlowTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs on how many occasions in each of the last 10 years the judgment of the full European Court of Justice has been contrary in principle to that of the advocate general. [21024]
§ Mr. David DavisThe EC treaty lays on advocates general the duty to assist the European Court of Justice by making reasoned submissions on cases brought before the court, acting with complete impartiality and independence. The ECJ is not bound to follow an opinion. In any given case, it may agree or disagree with any of the legal arguments in the opinion. Notable examples of cases where the court has disagreed strongly with the Advocate General include the recent Graham ruling on invalidity benefit and the Faccini Dori, case, where the court ruled out the possibility of horizontal direct effect for directives. An attempt to make a comparison of the kind requested by the hon. Member would inevitable oversimplify reality. Judgments can of course be contrary to elements of an opinion without overturning it entirely.