Public interest litigation in the EU: Advocating for the introduction of the class action before the CJEU

This article advocates for the introduction of the class action before the CJEU. Increasingly, court cases are brought by civil society organizations to enforce existing norms and tackle global challenges such as climate change, migration, and data protection. Whether and the way in which these public interest cases can be brought is dependent on standing requirements. Famously, the CJEU is rather closed off when it comes to such cases. Due to the Plaumann criteria of direct and individual concern, it is notoriously difficult to access the Courtin direct actions, particularly the action for annulment and the action for failure to act. Despite academic and practical arguments against the CJEU’s approach, there has been no widening of standing. Therefore, this article argues for the introduction of a new procedural mechanism, the class action, before the CJEU in order to actually complete the EU’s system of remedies. By taking the examples of the class action in the United States and the Netherlands, it is setout how an EU class action could take shape and how this mechanism accommodates the criticism against and rationale behind the CJEU’s approach in Plaumann. The purpose of the article is not to give a realistic account of an EU class action to be implemented instantly, but the research is future-oriented and aims to trigger academic debate on the EU and its ‘complete system of remedies.’