Court of Justice, statute: the quorum and the number of judges following the 2004 enlargement (amend. art. 16, 17)

COMMISSION OPINION To recall, when the When the Nice Treaty was signed, the exact number of countries acceding and the order in which they would do so had not yet been formally decided upon, so the Treaty merely aligned the quorum for the full Court on the number of Judges making up the Grand Chamber. The Commission is of the opinion that it would be preferable to maintain the balance embodied by Article 16 of the Statute. If it is nevertheless decided to increase the number of Judges in the Grand Chamber, the Commission stresses that this increase should not be linked to the number of Judges making up the Court. The Commission regards the proposal to increase the quorum for the full Court from 11 to 15 Judges as appropriate. The Commission stresses that this quorum should not, under any circumstances, be used as a reference for a future enlargement of the Grand Chamber.�