The Court of Justice of the European Union, the EU's highest court, is due to publish two rulings on Thursday 16 July on Spain's amnesty law, a key legal test for cases still blocked more than a year after the law entered into force in June 2024.

For readers in Catalonia, the immediate consequence is clear. The court's decisions may shape whether Spanish courts revisit outstanding cases linked to the 2017 independence push, including proceedings affecting former Catalan president Carles Puigdemont and other senior figures, but the rulings will not by themselves end those cases.

According to reporting by ARA and details published ahead of the hearing, the Luxembourg court will rule on preliminary questions sent by the Court of Auditors and the Audiencia Nacional, Spain's National Court. The questions concern whether parts of Organic Law 1/2024 of 10 June on amnesty for the institutional, political and social normalisation in Catalonia are compatible with EU law.

Two cases will be decided on 16 July

The first ruling concerns the Court of Auditors' case on financial liability for the use of public funds linked to the 1 October 2017 referendum and related overseas action tied to the independence process.

That proceeding affects 35 former Catalan officials, according to the material published before the ruling, including Carles Puigdemont, Artur Mas and Oriol Junqueras.

The second ruling concerns a preliminary question from the Audiencia Nacional over whether amnesty can be applied in a terrorism case involving 12 members of the Committees for the Defence of the Republic, known as the CDR.

  • Date of the rulings: Thursday 16 July.
  • Law under review: Organic Law 1/2024, published on 10 June 2024.
  • Proceedings covered on Thursday: one from the Court of Auditors and one from the Audiencia Nacional.

Democràta's report on the court timetable said the Grand Chamber will publish the first two rulings on the law after receiving four preliminary questions from Spanish courts. In earlier opinions issued last November, the Advocate General rejected the idea that the law amounted to a "self-amnesty" or that it necessarily breached EU rules on terrorism or the protection of the Union's financial interests, while leaving open the possibility of more limited breaches.

Why Puigdemont's case is still unresolved

The amnesty law was finally approved by Spain's Congress and then published in the Official State Gazette in June 2024. But ARA's reporting says the judicial dispute has continued because the Supreme Court has refused to apply the law to some alleged misuse of public funds cases.

That matters directly for Puigdemont, Toni Comín and Lluís Puig, whose situations remain unresolved. ARA reported that even if the EU court finds the amnesty compatible with European law, the decision would not be applied automatically to all pending cases.

Instead, Spanish courts would still have to act on the ruling in the specific proceedings before them. ARA also reported that Spain's Constitutional Court would then still need to decide whether the Supreme Court's interpretation of alleged embezzlement is correct.

Even if the ruling states that the amnesty is in accordance with European law, it will not be automatically applied.

Euractiv has also reported that Spain's Supreme Court has refused to apply the amnesty to Puigdemont in relation to alleged misuse of public funds. Separate reporting cited in the source file says the Supreme Court did not ask the EU court for guidance before taking that position, unlike other Spanish courts that did suspend proceedings and send questions to Luxembourg.

What readers can do now

Anyone following an affected case should check the Court of Justice of the European Union's published judgment once it is issued on Thursday, and then watch for the response from the Spanish court handling that specific case. The legal effect will depend on the exact wording of the ruling and on how the Spanish court applies it.

For the text of the law itself, readers can consult the official BOE publication of Organic Law 1/2024. The Court of Justice case register also lists one of the proceedings as Case C-587/24.

The court's decisions are scheduled for Thursday 16 July.

Primary sources: boe.es, boe.es. Reported by Source Text Link, Euractiv, José María Brunet, By Agencias, russpain.com, Antoni Bassas, eucrim.eu, congreso.es, apnews.com, Nuria Santesteban, Juri Berger | Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights, CH, Fernando J. Pérez, Reyes Rincón, RTVE.es, catalannews.com, Diari ARA.