Sacha Prechal

Alexandra 'Sacha' Prechal (born 15 March 1959) is a Dutch law professor and judge. From 2010 to 2024 she was a judge at the European Court of Justice. She previously worked as professor of European Law at Tilburg University and Utrecht University.

Early life and career Prechal was born on 15 March 1959 in Prague, Czechoslovakia. Her father worked as cellist for the in Leeuwarden, the Netherlands, since 1967. At the time of the Prague Spring in 1968 Prechal and her mother were visiting her father on holidays and they remained in the Netherlands. Growning up Prechal was interested in pursuing a career with languages and was interested in becoming an interpreter. She was advised to go obtain a degree in law as interpreters mostly worked for the European Community.

European Court of Justice In 2010 Prechal was appointed as a judge of the European Court of Justice. In February 2018 her term in office was extended for another six years. In 2022 Prechal stated she was not interested in pursuing a third term and preferred to dedicate time to academic activity, leisure, and writing a third edition of her original thesis. She handled a case on the discrimination of women regarding social security in Spain.

Prechal stated that her predecessors Thijmen Koopmans and Jos Kapteyn, whom she worked under between 1987 and 1991, were large influences, teaching her professional skills. Prechal was named as the most powerful Dutch woman in the field of Justice and Public Order in 2012 by Opzij magazine. She obtained an honorary doctorate from Tilburg University in 2013.

Personal life Prechal met her future husband Alex Brenninkmeijer at a conference. The couple owned a house in the French Alps. Brenninkmeijer died in 2022. European Constitutional Law Review, Member of the Board of Advisors Dutch Society for European Law, Member of the Board