The reference in CR and TP v Soledil sits squarely
within a long line of cases in which the Court of Justice of the
European Union (the "Court") has
emphasised that the system of consumer protection established by
Directive 93/13 of 5 April 1993 on unfair terms in consumer
contracts (the "Directive") is built on
the premise of effective judicial oversight, even where consumers
themselves fail to invoke their rights.
The long‑running dispute between CR and TP and the
property developer Soledil once again placed before the Court of
Justice a fundamental question at the intersection of consumer
protection and national procedural autonomy: can national rules on
res judicata prevent a court from examining the unfairness of a
contractual term when no such assessment has ever been carried
out?
