Work

Is there an EU Copyright Jurisprudence? An Empirical Analysis of the Workings of the European Court of Justice

Year: 2016

Type: article

Abstract: The Court of Justice of the European Union has seen a dramatic and controversial increase in copyright cases during the last decade. This study investigates empirically two claims: (i) that the Court has failed to develop a coherent copyright jurisprudence (lacking domain expertise, copyright specific reasoning, and predictability); (ii) that the Court has pursued an activist, harmonising agenda (resorting to teleological interpretation of European law). We analyse the allocation of copyright and database right cases by Chambers of the Court, Advocate General (AG) and Reporting Judge, and investigate the biographical background of the Judges and AGs sitting. We trace patterns of reasoning in the Court's approach through quantitative content analysis. Legal topoi that are employed in the opinions and decisions are linked to the outcomes of each case.

Source: Modern Law Review

DOI: 10.1111/1468-2230.12166

Authors: Marcella Favale, Martin Kretschmer, Paul C. Torremans

Institutions: University of Glasgow, Bournemouth University, University of Nottingham, CREATe Centre, Modern Law Review

Language: English

Topic: Intellectual Property Law

Subfield: Law

Field: Social Sciences

Domain: Social Sciences

SDG: Peace, justice, and strong institutions

Open Access status: bronze

Funder: Arts and Humanities Research Council