The European project has always been a contested one and may even be considered to be a polity in a quasi-permanent crisis. Indeed, European integration has faced, almost from the start, various... Show moreThe European project has always been a contested one and may even be considered to be a polity in a quasi-permanent crisis. Indeed, European integration has faced, almost from the start, various crises: from De Gaulle’s empty chair, to the recurring tensions over the budget and Margaret Thatcher’s opposition to a political Union, to the constitutional crisis. Today, the EU again faces multiple challenges. It is still struggling with the economic and social consequences of the 2008 financial crisis, and economic governance remains a controversial issue. The migration crisis provoked various conflicts between the Member states and the Commission. The European Union’s (EU’s) scope of intervention and its legitimacy is increasingly called into question, and Brexit has triggered new existential debates on the purposes and forms of European integration. In some countries, the values underpinning the integration process, and more generally liberal democracy, are increasingly threatened. And following the results of the 2019 European elections, acknowledging the problems related to the functioning of supranational institutions and the citizens’ distancing from the European project, the European Parliament, supporting the Commission President’s proposal, called on Member states to launch a Conference on the Future of Europe by 2020. Finally, in the first semester of 2020, the outbreak of Coronavirus (COVID-19) not only posed serious challenges to the public health sectors of Member states but also uncertainties related to the pandemic might trigger deeper socio-economic impact in the EU in the medium term. This succession of crises, each different but all shaking the European project, is a unique opportunity to think about what crises are and what they mean for the European integration. Show less
Over the course of fifteen years, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) has developed a considerable body of jurisprudence on age discrimination. Approximately thirty cases is indeed... Show moreOver the course of fifteen years, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) has developed a considerable body of jurisprudence on age discrimination. Approximately thirty cases is indeed notable, especially when compared with other discrimination grounds enlisted in Article 1 FED. The vast majority of these cases deal with measures affecting older workers, particularly regarding the retirement age or pension schemes. A significantly smaller number of cases – only five – concern measures affecting younger workers. Research analysing these cases indicate that the CJEU has been rather lenient in accepting measures regarding older workers and more strict in accepting measures targeting younger workers.However, this approach potentially puts EU Youth Policy under pressure. Moreover, it raises the question of whether the Framework Equality Directive is not in fact hampering measures to improve the situation of young people. In other words, it should be determined whether the FED is a curse or a blessing for EU Youth Policy. Show less
Artikel 6:1 BW bepaalt dat verbintenissen 'slechts' ontstaan 'indien dit uit de wet voortvloeit'. In de parlementaire stukken over deze regel is veel aandacht voor de verhouding tussen geschreven... Show moreArtikel 6:1 BW bepaalt dat verbintenissen 'slechts' ontstaan 'indien dit uit de wet voortvloeit'. In de parlementaire stukken over deze regel is veel aandacht voor de verhouding tussen geschreven en ongeschreven recht, maar weinig aandacht voor de vraag uit welk type 'wet' een verbintenis kan voortvloeien. De ontwerpers zullen hebben gedacht aan wetten in materiële zin, opgesteld door de Nederlandse wetgever. Inmiddels weten we dat verbintenissen evengoed kunnen voortvloeien uit het EVRM en uit het primaire en secundaire Unierecht. Dit roept de vraag op of er geleidelijk een weeffout in het Burgerlijk Wetboek is ontstaan. Kan het Europese recht gelden als bron van verbintenissen in de zin van artikel 6:1 BW? Passen deze Europese verbintenissen in het Nederlandse stelsel? En is het noodzakelijk en wenselijk deze verbintenissen in dit stelsel in te weven? In mijn bijdrage probeer ik deze vragen te beantwoorden. Ik onderzoek of de uit het EVRM en het Unierecht voortvloeiende verbintenissen kunnen worden gekwalificeerd als verbintenissen ‘uit de wet’ in de zin van artikel 6:1 BW. Deze zoektocht voert onder meer langs Quint/Te Poel, de parlementaire geschiedenis, de Grondwet, artikel 41 EVRM, Van Gend & Loos, Francovich, Courage/Crehan, verschillende Europese verordeningen, Sturgeon en TenneT/ABB. Show less
This chapter describes the nature of EU law as well as the ways in which several unique characteristics of EU law were vital for effective EU integration. This supports a comparative analysis of... Show moreThis chapter describes the nature of EU law as well as the ways in which several unique characteristics of EU law were vital for effective EU integration. This supports a comparative analysis of EAC law, and discusses the question if other forms of regional integration need similar doctrines to be effective. Show less
This chapter discusses the external dimension of the EU, including its gradual evolution over time and the legal doctrinese developed by the CJEU to gradually develop a more extensive external... Show moreThis chapter discusses the external dimension of the EU, including its gradual evolution over time and the legal doctrinese developed by the CJEU to gradually develop a more extensive external competence Show less
This chapter discusses the gradual development of general principles in EU law, including fundamental rights, and the central role they played in the evolution of EU law. This provides a basis for... Show moreThis chapter discusses the gradual development of general principles in EU law, including fundamental rights, and the central role they played in the evolution of EU law. This provides a basis for the discussion of possible future evolutions of general principles in EAC law. Show less
Diverse assessments of the EU's role in global governance suggest a great need for dependable and justifiable benchmarks. This chapter argues that constitutional foreign policy objectives are an... Show moreDiverse assessments of the EU's role in global governance suggest a great need for dependable and justifiable benchmarks. This chapter argues that constitutional foreign policy objectives are an important source for such benchmarks — for conceptual, empirical, and normative reasons. Conceptually speaking, global governance is an inherently rule-oriented as well as goal-oriented concept. Empirically, such substantive global governance goals can be found today in many constitutions, including those of the rising powers of the emerging multipolar world. EU primary law post-Lisbon is part of this trend, but also goes further. Next to an extensive collection of substantive objectives, it also puts a distinctive emphasis on law as an essential ingredient of its foreign policy and consequently of its vision for global governance. From a normative point of view, the peculiar features pertaining to constitutional law as a source for global governance guidance, as opposed to policy documents or other law, appear at first sight as problematic. In particular for the EU, facing the challenge of ‘relative decline’ in a multi-polar world, entrenching such an ambitious agenda in its highest laws may appear as audacious wishful thinking. On closer inspection, however, these particular features reveal the true value of the constitutional codification of a global governance agenda. Show less
