By Inssaff Cheriff

Wednesday April 26th was a big day for us, as we attended the Microsoft case in the Court of Justice in Luxembourg. It was very interesting, primarily because of the sheer importance of the case for EC Competition Law. Microsoft is a worldwide company with a lot of power and wealth. That, however, does not mean that it can do whatever it likes. Microsoft has to respect the law; in this case, European Competition Law.

The first part of the hearing took four hours, with a fifteen minute break. It was unfortunately very technical.After the first part of the hearing, we had lunch. The setting was beautiful and the food delicious. Judge Meij and Mr. Baumé accompanied us. Firstly Judge Meij talked about the legal importance of the Microsoft case. Then he talked about the political impact of the case. When he finished his talk, Mr. Baumé stood up.

Mr. Baumé explained to us briefly the difference between the Court of First Instance and the Court of Justice. There are 25 judges and no permanent Advocates-General attached to the Court of First Instance. The Court of Justice is composed of 8 Advocates-General and 25 judges. Advocates-General assist the Court by making an independent preliminary assessment of the case. This assessment is, however, not binding.

Unfortunately, Mr. Baumé couldn't stay long, as he had to attend the second part of the hearing. He apologised for the brevity of his five-minute-long talk and wished us all the best of luck.

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