A legal portrait of President Koen Lenaerts

Abstract This article draws a legal portrait of President Lenaerts, in an attempt to critically examine both his description of the institution to which he belongs, and his influence upon it. It is based on a comprehensive study of his public and formalised statements (published or on podcasts) since the year of his election in 2015. Based on these research materials, this article examines the contextual elements of Lenaerts’ personality, career path, and the challenges currently facing the European Court of Justice. It also illustrates that Lenaerts is an exceptionally gifted legal mind, educated from his earliest years in Community law, with a career both shaped by and devoted to the Court. The article argues that, although Lenaerts remains publicly discreet about the Court’s internal organization, he nonetheless exerts a significant influence over its functioning and reform process. Furthermore, while Lenaerts publicly defends the idea of law as apolitical, he advances a normative vision of what EU law ought to be and asserts that its current form serves the interests of European citizens. Lenaerts is an influential President who skilfully leverages his scholarly authority to defend the Court and its jurisprudence, presented as coherent. Yet, his position is not without ambiguity, as he frequently shifts roles – scholar, citizen, or President – while defending a specific point. A significant part of his influence lies in the subtle gaps between his professed positions and his concrete actions, as well as between his dual role as scholar and as President—two interstices where institutional power is exercised less visibly, but no less effectively.