[...] This book deals with the ways that all concepts of gender equality are implemented within the framework of EU law. Many cases pertaining to issues such as equal treatment, equal pay, maternity, pregnancy and social security have been brought before the European Court of Justice, all having an important impact on the clarification of gender discrimination, thus influencing EU policies on these matters. It must be noted that the ECJ - mostly owing to the fact that both the Race Directive and the Framework Directive are recent additions to the European legal corpus - has not as yet rendered "strong" judgments with regard to such issues, despite the fact that the context of the new instruments leaves an important amount of discretion to the Court s rulings; the most important of these rulings are further discussed hereinafter, with the hope that the future ECJ case law will clarify and consolidate the importance of gender equality. [...] (από τον πρόλογο της συγγραφέως)