Supranational court with jurisdiction to interpret the European Economic Area (EEA) Agreement in respect of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) states party to the EEA Agreement (namely, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway).

The court is mainly competent to deal with infringement actions brought by the EFTA Surveillance Authority (ESA) against an EFTA state regarding the implementation, application or interpretation of EEA law rules, for giving advisory opinions to courts in EFTA states on the interpretation of EEA rules and for appeals concerning decisions taken by ESA.

The jurisdiction of the EFTA Court largely corresponds to the jurisdiction of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) over EU member states. The proceedings before the EFTA Court consist of a written part and an oral part and all proceedings are in English. In direct actions, the judgment is rendered in English only. Advisory opinions are rendered in English and in the language of the requesting court.

The EFTA Court consists of three judges, one nominated by each of the EFTA states party to the EEA Agreement. The judges are appointed by common accord of the EFTA states for a period of six years. The judges elect their President for a term of three years.

For more information, see the EFTA Court website.