Chapter 2 EU Institutions Flashcards
What are the seven European Union institutions under the EU treaty?
- European Parliament
- European Council
- Council of Europe
- European Commission (Commission)
- Court of justice of the European Union
- European Central Bank (ECB)
- Court of Auditors
which two institutions have been granted institutional status?
- European Council
- European Central Bank
Is the Charter on Human rights legally binding on institutions?
Yes, because the Lisbon Treaty elevated to legally binding treaty.
Article 8 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights
Right to protection of personal data.
is it possible to op-out of the Charter on Fundamental Rights?
No, Poland and UK tried to with a protocol. This was denied by the CJEU.
Following Brexit, was the Charter of Fundamental incoporated into UK law
Yes, and other aspects of EU law were incorporated through EUWA (EU (withdrawal) Act)
which two institutions have budgetary and legislative power?
According to the Lisbon Treaty, European Parliament jointly with the Council of the European union
What are the four responsibilities of the european parliament?
- legislative development
- supervisory oversight of other institutions
- democratic representation
- development of the budget
can citizens directly elect members of the european parliament?
yes.
describe the ordinary procedure
both parliament and council must assent to legislation.
describe the consultation procedure
the council of the european union has legislative power and can consult the parliament but is not bound by parliament’s position.
describe the consent procedure
for important decisions, parliament’s consent is required.
describe the powers of the parliament over the commission
- censure commission
- forcing college of commissioners to resign
- oversight of the commission’s activities
- in concert with council, influence spending
how many members of the european parliament can each state have?
minimum of 6 and not more than 96.
how often are MEPs elected?
every 5 years.
describe the role of the parliament regarding data protection
Lisbon treaty enshrines right to protection of personal data in law.
who comprises the european council
all member’s heads of state and the commission president
what is the role of the european council
meets 4 times a year to establish EU priorities.
describe the duties of the commission
- initiating legislation
- overseeing the application of union law under control of the CJEU
- executing the budget
- coordinating executive and management functions detailed in treaties.
do commissioners have country affiliations?
although elected by each member state and approved by parliament. they are not expected to act in the interests of their original countries.
what is the role of the commission regarding data protection?
- adoption of directives
- making adequacy findings for non-EU member states
wht are the two components of the CJEU
- ECJ court of justice
- CFI court of first instance
who comprises the ECJ
- 27 judges appointed by each member state for 6 year term
- 1 president elected from their number for a 3 year term
- 8 advocates general (who craft non-binding guidances on cases before the ECJ)
Jurisdiction of the ECJ
- cases brought by commission/member state against another for failure to fulfil treaty obligations
- review of legality fo acts by EU institutions (may be brought by EU institution, natural/legal perosns or member states)
- actions for EU institutions failure to act (may be brought by EU institution, natural/legal perosns or member states)
- actions begun at nat’l courts intepreting EU law
- determining compatitbity of EU international agreements with treaties
- appeals on points of law from CFI.
describe the Google Spain case
on the right to be forgotten, the ECJ held search engines must remove the list of results following a search where the individual objects and certain circumstances are met
describe the ANAF case
personal data may not be transfered between public administrative bodies of a member state without individuals being informed of the transfer
describe the Tele2 Sverige and Tom Watson case
indiscriminate retention of data for fighting crim was incompatible with the ePrivacy Directive 2002/58/EC
describe the Schrems Ruling
- invalidated the Privacy Shield (on data transfers to the US.
- standard contractual clauses for the transfer of data to third countries was valid on a case by case basis.
is the ECtHR an institution of the EU?
No, instead of the Council of Europe a body of 47 member states
who may bring applications before the ECtHR
individuals or member states
are the judgments of the ECtHR binding?
yes.
who comprises the ECtHR?
- same number of judges as member states incl. registrar, 2 VP, 3 section presidents.
*no two judges can be from the same member state
describe the jurisdiction of the ECtHR.
- natural/legal persons complaining about a violation of rights
- interstate applications
can the ECtHR overrule national law?
no
name the 8 rights under the ECHR
(1) the right to life;
(2) the right to a fair hearing in civil and criminal matters;
(3) the right to respect for private and family life;
(4) freedom of expression;
(5) freedom of thought, conscience, and religion;
(6) the right to an effective remedy;
(7) the right to the peaceful enjoyment of possessions; and
(8) the right to vote and stand for election
describe the ECtHR judgment in the three french cases of 2009
inclusion on a sex offender list was not a derogation from article 8
describe the MM v UK case
the ECtHR found that collection of data relating to criminal matters should be regulated, in particular the safeguard and disposal as appropriate of the data should be detailed.
describe the findings in the Big Brother watch v UK case
sought to challenge: mass surveilence, inter-country intelligence sharing, and interception of communications data from communications service providers.
general chamber gave guidance on compliant bulk interceptions: place end-to-end safeguards, consider proportionality, subject to initial independent authorisation, and subject to review after the fact.
