Sources and Supremacy of EU law Flashcards
Åkerberg Fransson Case (2013) - fundamental rights
scope of fundamental rights
A member state’s tax penalties (a national competence) were deemed subject to the CFR because they were linked to EU VAT rules. This sparked debate over potential overreach, as the CJEU emphasized that any connection to EU law triggers the Charter.
Van Gend en Loos - EU Supremacy
Created a new type of direct effect that allowed EU citizens to reply upon EU legilsation in national courts and existed ‘independently of the legislation of member states’ - this highlighted that the ‘new legal order’ of the EU was self-sufficent and self-sustaining and that EU law was had supremacy in national courts
Solange I (Internationale Handelsgesellschaft) - EU supremacy
EU law has primacy over national law.
Validity of EU law measures cannot be challenged on grounds of national law rules or concepts, even if it is a violation of fundamental human rights provisions in a member states constitution
facts:
* Under EU Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) rules, exporters needed a license to ship goods. To get one, they had to pay a deposit, which they would lose if they didn’t export within the license’s time limit.
* A company (IH) failed to export its maize on time and lost its deposit. It argued that this system violated its right to conduct business under German constitutional law (Basic Law).
* The German Constitutional Court agreed, saying the deposit rule restricted economic freedom and was disproportionate. It also ruled that forfeiting the deposit should not be limited only to cases of force majeure (unavoidable events).
* However, the EU General Court later held that the CAP regulations were valid under EU law and could not be overruled by national law (like Germany’s Basic Law).
Elements of EU supremacy
Novelty
Independence
Autonomy
Primacy
Factortame - EU supremacy
Facts:
* The EU’s Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) sets fishing quotas for each member state.
* Some Spanish vessels registered under the UK flag to exploit its quota, despite having no real ties to the UK.
* The UK passed the Merchant Shipping Act 1988 (MSA 1988), requiring UK-registered vessels to be 75% British-owned to prevent quota abuse.
* Spanish fishermen sued, arguing the law discriminated based on nationality and violated EU free movement rules.
* The House of Lords (Factortame I) initially refused to grant interim relief as it believed it lacked the power to strike down legislation or make orders contrary to Parliament’s will, but the ECJ ruled (Case C-213/89) that national courts must grant interim relief to protect EU rights, even if it means disapplying conflicting national law.
* The HoL then suspended the MSA 1988, marking a key moment in EU law supremacy over national legislation.
Highlights the primacy of EU law:
* EU law prevails where national laws conflict with it.
* National courts must disapply domestic laws that undermine EU rights.
MOX plant case - EU supremacy
Ireland was found to have violated it’s obligations under article 344 TEU (which stated that any dispute concerning the treaty must be brought before the CJEU) by taking it’s dispute with the UK before a UN tribunal rather than the CJ
Kadi and Al Barakaat case - EU supremacy
CJEU that EU measures implamenting UN securituy council resolutions must comply with EU fundamantal rights standards. The CJEU prioritized the EU’s constitutional principles over UNSC obligations, effectively asserting that EU law is not subservient to international law when fundamental rights are at stake.
Novelty with Constraints: The EU’s legal system is novel in its constitutionalization of international cooperation, but its authority remains contingent on member state consent and conferred powers. The case exposes the tension between the EU’s aspiration to be a global normative actor and its reliance on traditional international law mechanisms.
