EU Law Flashcards
Booklet 10
who are the council of the EU
clue: countries, relevance
27 gov ministers from each member country. president changes every 6 months and relevant gov ministers for the topic will be sent
what is the council of the EUs role in law making
includes debating anf voting in laws. qualified majority vote- 55% of members state as represents 65% of EU population
who are the european commission
clue: eu policy
27 members for 5 years or more- one per state who each represent one area of EU policy. can only be removed through a vote in EU parliament.
EU commision 3 role in law making
1) propose new ideas for EU laws and drafting them
2) ensure members of state following EU laws
3) supervising union budget
who are the european parliament (similar to normal parliament)
705 members who are elected by EU citizens. sit in political not national groups. number based on population e,g Malta has 6 yet Germany have 96
who are the court of justice of the EU (ECJ)
key words:
advocates
senior
one judge per member state (27) plus 11 advocates to support (nuetral as theyre just there to explain). in each case judges sit in panel of 3, 5 and 11. these judges must be existing senior judge or senior legal academic in their member state. appointed for 6 years and can be reappointed
what is the ECJs role in law making (2)
key words:
treaty
rulings
make sure each member state follows the treaty rules
hearing points of law referred from national courts and giving preliminary rulings on each issue (article 267)
what is the european parliament 5 roles in law making
clues:
new (3)
worldwide
looking over someone else in the eu
1) debating and voting on new rules in committes
2) discussing proposals for new laws in committes
3) deciding on international agreements
4) deciding whether to admit new members of states
5) review work of commission
how does the ECJ differ from uk courts
4 reasons
1) ECJ can have ‘paper hearings’ and written arguements - many languages
2) ECJ has advocate generals in each case who present the law
3) whichever side wins writes up the judgement and all judges have to sign
4) ECJ is not bound by its own decisions
what are the three types of treaties found in the EU and why for first two (with examples but last may be hard to remember)
1) founding- set up the EU e.g treaty if Rome 1957
2) accession- when a member joins e.g treaty of accession 1972 when the UK, Denmark and Ireland joined
3) ammending- EU 1992 maastrincht treaty
regulations- Re Tacographs v UK 1979
secondary laws (type of law that is made by authorities other than the parliament or the legislature) made by the European Commission, Council of the EU and the European Parliament.
Under article 288 TFEU these are automatically binding in all member states as soon as the national law is passed by the EU. This makes them directly applicable to all citizens using vertical and horizontal direct effect.
when the UK failed to enforce an EU regulation regarding compulsory recording equipment in lorries, the European Commission took the UK to the ECJ and won
what are directives (+e.g)
secondary laws (type of law that is made by authorities other than the parliament or the legislature) made by the European Commission, Council of the EU and the European Parliament. Not automatically binding and instead set out a ‘target’ or ‘goal’ for all member states to change their own national laws to fall in line with the target. e.g Consumer Rights Directive 2011 was brought into UK law in full in the Consumer Rights Act 2015
impact on EU law on UK- what was decided in the case of Factortame 1991
the first decision was made by the UK as the case was about a spanish fisherman on uk water and uk law said boats must have british crew but EU law overruled that as it says boats can have citizens of any EU country
what is vertical direct effect with an example
clue:
individual vs…
UK citizens make a claim against the UK gov if they didnt uphold treaties or regulations that would have given them a right but UK law didnt. Marshall v Southampton 1986- Mrs M made a claim against her employees for forced retirement as they were seen as an ‘arm of the state’ so claim was allowed as they seen as ‘arm of state’ same with foster v British gas as BG seen as ‘arm of state’
what is the horizontal direct effect (with an example)
clue:
individual vs…
UK citizens could make a claim against another UK citizen or business in UK courts but using rights conferred under EU treaties and regulations. e.g Duke v GEC Reliance 1988
Similar facts to Marshall but there was no claim as the employer was a private business and not an ‘arm of the state’
what does having a directive do
if the member of state doesnt implement one this effects this individuals rights and they can have action against the MS ( VDE) but with directives this can only be against the state not people or businesses (NOT HDE)
directive not impliemnted in case of Frankovich v Italy 1991 but what happened in this case
directive not implemented by gov secured protection for employees of companies who go bankrupt leaving F with no compensation. There was no horizontal direct effect but F had a claim against the Italian government for not implementing the law meaning F could take action against the state.
timeline: what happened on 1st jan 1973
uk officially joins eu under the European Communities Act 1972
what happened in 1993
UKIP Party formed, who would later campaign for the UK to leave the EU
what happened on 7th may 2015
Conservative party gains power in the UK Parliament, after having promised a referendum as part of their manifesto. UKIP won 12% of the vote (but only 1 seat)- people who votes conservative started to vote UKIP
what happened on 23rd june 2016
Referendum takes place on whether the UK should Leave the EU or Remain in the EU. Leave wins by a narrow 52%-48% margin
what happened on 2nd march 2017
UK invokes Article 50 of the Treaty on the EU, which formally starts the 2 year process of the UK leaving the EU
what happened on 31st jan 2020
After various extensions and failed agreements on a post-Brexit deal, the UK officially leaves the EU in what is called “Brexit day”
what happened on 31st December 2020
The end of the 11 month transition period, and deadline for any trade agreement to be made between the UK and the EU
