L 196/24 Official Journal of the European Communities 14.7.98 DECISION No 1496/98/EC OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of 22 June 1998 establishing an action programme to improve awareness of Community law within the legal professions (Robert Schuman project) THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, and in particular Article 100a thereof, Having regard to the proposal from the Commission ('), Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and Social Committee (%), Acting in accordance with the procedure laid down in Atrticle 189b of the Treaty (%), 1) Whereas Declaration No 19 on the implementa- tion of Community law annexed to the Final Act of the Treaty on European Union stresses that it is essential for the proper functioning of the Community that the measures taken by the different Member States should result in Community law being applied with the same ef- fectiveness and rigour as in the application of their national law; Whereas the completion of the internal market has required a considerable legislative effort involving, inter alia, the approximation of national laws with a view to creating an area without internal frontiers; Whereas the effective and uniform application of the Community rules in question represents a new priority which is essential to the smooth func- tioning of the internal market; Whereas those Community rules on the freedoms of the internal market which have direct effect may be invoked before any national court in accordance with procedures defined by national law; whereas citizens, consumers and undertakings must be able to rely on the application of those rules and to benefit from the rights and guarantees which they confer in the Member States as a whole; whereas legal certainty and the credibility of the internal market are at stake as is, more generally, con- fidence in the whole process of European integra- tion; ) OJ C 378, 13. 12. 1996, p. 17, and OJ C 368, 5. 12. 1997, p p p. 6. (® OJ C 206, 7. 7. 1997, p. 63. () Opinion of the European Parliament of 24 October 1997 (O] C 339, 10. 11. 1997, 9 March 1998 (O] C 135, 30. 4. 1998, p. 410), Council Common Position of p. 25) and Decision of the European Parliament of 30 April 1998 (O] C 152, 18. 5. 1998). Council Decision of 18 May 1998. ©) Whereas citizens, consumers and undertakings will be unable to assert all their rights under the Community legal order before any national court unless those members of the legal professions most directly involved in applying Community law, namely judges, prosecutors and lawyers, are suffi- ciently informed and trained to do so; Whereas the Commission communication to the Council of 22 December 1993 entitled ‘Making the most of the internal market: strategic programme’ emphasises the importance, for individuals as well as for the smooth functioning of the internal market, of national courts being in a position to resolve a larger proportion of cases concerning the conformity of rules or conduct with Community law and, to that end, the need to improve know- ledge of Community law within the legal profes- sions; Whereas in its resolution of 13 February 1996 on the Commission’s 12th Annual Report on monitoring the application of Community law (*) the European Parliament asked the Commission to put forward a programme for the purpose of training and informing the legal professions in the tield of Community law with a view to making the application of Community law by national courts more uniform and effective; Whereas raising awareness of Community law among members of the legal professions involved in the administration of justice in the Member States is likely to improve cooperation between national courts and the Court of Justice of the European Communities which is an inherent part of the Community legal order; Whereas, in accordance with the principle of subsi- diarity and by virtue of Article 127 of the Treaty, it is not for the European Community to assume the role of the Member States in determining the organisation or content of training for members of the legal professions involved in the administration of justice, namely judges, prosecutors and lawyers; () OJ C 65, 4. 3. 1996, p. 37.