European Union : UN Sanctions and EU Fundamental Rights

On September 3, 2008, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) delivered its much-anticipated judgment in the Kadi and Al Barakaat International Foundation cases. These proceedings concerned the lawfulness of a European Community (EC) regulation that implements the United Nations Security Council's orders to freeze the assets of alleged terrorists or terrorist supporters. The Court of First Instance (CFI) had refused to review the regulation fully, on the ground that its basis lay in Security Council resolutions. On appeal, the ECJ stressed that all legislative acts issued by Community organs had to comply with the fundamental rights guaranteed under EC law, even when those acts were designed to implement resolutions of the Security Council, which are binding on UN member states under international law. Finding that the regulation violated the appellants ' rights to be heard, to effective judicial review, and to have their property respected, the ECJ set aside the judgments of the CFI and annulled the contested regulation insofar as it applied to the appellants