The Court of Justice of the European Union is the judicial body of the EU. Its role is to ensure that EU laws are respected by the EU’s institutions and Member States and applied in the same way throughout the whole of the EU. This ensures that the EU is based on the rule of law, a fundamental element of all democratic entities. Giving rulings in areas such as consumer protection, the environment, privacy rights, equal treatment and worker rights, that directly affect the lives of all EU citizens, the Court of Justice of the EU guarantees that EU citizens enjoy the protection of EU law in exactly the same way, no matter where they are in the EU.