Guidelines on a Reference for Preliminary Ruling
the question of validity to the East African Court of Justice, stating the reasons
for which it considers the act to be invalid.
The stage at which to submit a question for a preliminary ruling
16. A national court or tribunal may refer a question to the Court for a
preliminary ruling as soon as it finds that a ruling on the point or points of
interpretation or validity is necessary to enable it to give judgment; it is the
national court which is in the best position to decide at what stage of the
proceedings such a question should be referred.
17. It is, however, desirable that a decision to seek a preliminary ruling should
be taken when the national proceedings have reached a stage at which the
national court is able to define the factual and legal context of the question, so
that the East African Court of Justice has available to it all the information
necessary to check, where appropriate, that East African Community law
applies to the main proceedings. It may also be in the interests of justice to
refer a question for a preliminary ruling only after both sides have been heard.
The form of the reference for a preliminary ruling
18. The decision by which a national court or tribunal refers a question to the
East African Court of Justice for a preliminary ruling may be in any form
allowed by national law as regards procedural steps. It must however be borne
in mind that it is that document which serves as the basis of the proceedings
before the Court and that it must therefore contain such information as will
enable the latter to give a reply which is of assistance to the national court.
Moreover, it is only the actual reference for a preliminary ruling which is
notified to the interested persons entitled to submit observations to the Court,
in particular the Partner States and Organs and Institutions of the Community.
The reference should be in English language.
19. The reference should be drafted simply, clearly and precisely, avoiding
superfluous detail.
20. A maximum of about 10 pages is generally sufficient to set out in a proper
manner the context of a reference for a preliminary ruling. The order for
reference must be succinct but sufficiently complete and must contain all the
relevant information to give the Court and the interested persons entitled to
submit observations a clear understanding of the factual and legal context of
the main proceedings. In particular, the order for reference must:
include a brief account of the subject-matter of the dispute and the
relevant findings of fact, or, at least, set out the factual situation on which the
question referred is based;
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