What is EU law - L1 Flashcards
Who can be part of the EU ?
Art. 49 EUV: „Any European State which respects the
values referred to in Article 2 and is committed to promoting
them may apply to become a member of the Union. The
European Parliament and national Parliaments shall be
notified of this application.“
The Union is thus defined in the
(i) Geographical sense (Europe)?
(ii) Political one (a community of values).
Member states today
Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Republic of Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain and Sweden.
Also note:
EFTA = european free trade area (started as an independent organisation; now only 3 members: Liechtenstein, Norway and Iceland)
EEA= european economic area (EU + EFTA)
What are the values of the Union? (Art. 2 EUV)
The Union is founded on the values of respect for
human dignity, freedom, democracy, equality, the rule of law and respect for human rights, including the rights of persons belonging to minorities. These
values are common to the Member States in a society in which pluralism, non-discrimination, tolerance,
justice, solidarity and equality between women and men prevail.
+ the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the EU (via the bridge of Art. 52 (3) of the Charter connected to the
ECHR standard).
EU law: Not just international trade
99% of EU law = at national level. European law affects everyone every day …
Perhaps not quite the “80% myth” … But a substantial part of national law
today of European origin, directly or indirectly.
3 situations when a case within the scope of EU law:
1/ Direct application of an EU source of law at the national level
2/ Implementation of an EU obligation
3/ Conflict of national rules with an EU law rule (4 fundamental freedoms,
equal treatment …)
Provided that the case is within the scope of EU law rationae materiae, then all
systemic characteristics of EU law (primacy, direct effect …) apply as well
before a national authority or judge …
Why the European Integration today? - utilitarian perspectives
A/ (Rather) utilitarian perspectives
= Internal market and market opportunity
= Free trade idea
= Single market - more trade volume, more choice, more wealth …
A social project (“Social Europe”)
- between the MSs: Cohesion (Art. 3 (3) TEU)
- between individuals: “European social model”? (Art. 3 (2) TEU)
Political stabilisation mechanism (internal and regional)
Levers of political influence (especially for the smaller MSs) EU-internal
EU-externally: weight of “Europe in the world”, in this dimension
important also for the larger MSs
Why the European Integration today? - idealist vision
B/ (A More) idealist vision
Integration as a peace project (Nobel Peace Prize)
Peacekeeping after and since World War II (ECSC 1951/52 -
Robert Schuman: If you pool resources, you cannot wage war
against each other …)
Cultural/political/historical necessity: Preamble to the TEU:
“the creation of an ever closer union among the peoples of
Europe”.
European Union as a community of values: currently in Art. 2
TEU
History - 1951 - 1965
1951, ECSC (in force 1952): Vertrag Europäische
Gemeinschaft für Kohle und Stahl (European Coal and
Steel Community)
1957, EEC and Euratom (in force 1958): Verträge über
die Europäische Wirtschaftsgemeinschaft (European
Economic Community) und die Europäische
Atomgemeinschaft (EWG/EEC)
1965, Fusion Treaty (in force 1967): (European
Economic Communities)
History - 1985 - 1993
1985 – Schengen Agreement
1986, Single European Act (in force 1987) First deeper reform of
the Treaties, expansion of policies => A prequel to the
completition of the Single/Common Market
1992, Treaty of Maastricht (in Kraft 1993); „Political Union“ –
Gemeinsame Außen- und Sicherheitspolitik/Common Foreign and
Security Policy (GASP/CFSP), Zusammenarbeit in den Bereichen
Justiz und Inneres/Justice and Home Affairs. Creation of an
Wirtschafts- und Währungsunion/Economic and Monetary Union
(a prequel to Euro).
1993, Copenhagen Criteria for the (Eastern) Enlargement, today
partially captured in Art. 2 TEU
History - 1997 - 2007
1997, Amsterdam treaty (in force 1999)
2001, Treaty of Nice (in force 2003)
2004 – The Constitutional Treaty
- rejected by Fr and NL referenda (2005)
2007, The Lisbon Treaty (in force 2009)
+ the Charter of Fundamental Rights
Most important treaties
Simplified: there have always been only 4 Treaties:
1) ECSC (today in a simple regulation under the TFEU)
2) Euroatom Treaty
3) EEC = EEC (Maastricht) = TFEU (Lissabon)
4) TEU (Maastricht) = TEU (Lissabon)
And it is really just 3 documents ts that are of importance today:
TEU + TFEU + Charter
Important to check – Article number post-what Treaty?
The articles are new numbered – Tables of equivalence in the Annexes to
the Treaties
(ex. extracontractual liability of the EU - is 340 TFEU = was 288 EEC
(post-Maastricht) = previously 249 EEC)
Evolution of treaties
1/ More competences always given to the EP, today codetermination (recogntion of the EP, # eliminating the
democratic deficit)
2/ New legal areas and competences of the EU (from the internal
market to a political union)
3/ Previously external areas of law or regulation are drawn into
the EU structures and “communitarised” (subjected to the Union
method – in particular the QMV is constantly expanded).
But no automatism – occasional “re-nationalisation” of certain
competences, processes, institutions … (e.g. CAP or CMO post
Lisbon).
The (R)Evolution in Lisbon
– the Charter
Union competence in fundamental rights matters … no, maybe,
yes, 2000+2009 - YES!
Accession to the ECHR (maybe, no, yes …)
Own catalogue of human rights - case law, not binding, then
since 2009 binding part of primary law.
The centripetal effect of the Charter on the entire legal discourse
since 2009 (radiating effect, third party effect, conform
interpretation …)
- Catalogue of human rights (case law, not binding, then since 2009 binding part of primary laws)
Applies to the EU (institutions, etc.) and the member states
The enlargements
og 6 (De, Fr, It, Benelux) +
1973 – UK, Ireland, Danemark
1981 – Greece
1986 – Spain, Portugal
1995 – Österreich, Sweden, Finland
2004 – Es, Lt, Lv, Pl, Cz, Sk, Hu, Sl, Cy, Mt
2007 – Romania, Bulgaria
2013 – Croatia
- 2020 – minus the UK
(Br)Exit
Art. 50 (1) EUV: Any Member State may decide to
withdraw from the Union in accordance with its own
constitutional requirements.
2016 Referendum. What and how is an effective
notification of an intention to withdraw? (C-621/18,
Wightman)
Rule of law issues
- Hungary since 2010, poland since 2015 (with sort of “return” with 2023 elections)
- 2016: first initiation of article 7 TEU proceedings for endangering the fundamental values of the EU (democracy and rule of law) against poland
- Since 2018 initiation of article 7 TEU procedure against hungary
- Conditional regime (adopted 2 years ago, form of regulation, need QMV, not majority, you get EU funds conditionally) – now Hungary has frozen funds
- Article 7= suspension of certain rights of a member state, if they violate article 2 (very complicated and u need unanimity, which is an issue)
