Breaking a Tradition: How Signing of Agreements Is No Longer a Matter for the Council

Insight

Abstract: The European Union has always concluded international agreements with third countries and international organisations as an integral component of its external action. In contrast to its predecessors, the Treaty of Lisbon introduced a uniform procedural framework for the negotiation and conclusion of international agreements in art. 218...

Who You Gonna Call? Insights from the ECJ’s Case C-551/21 on the Signature of International Agreements

Insight

Abstract: The current Insight analyses the judgment of the European Court of Justice in Case C-551/21, which upheld the Commission's claim regarding its right to exercise the external act of treaty signature. The decision sheds light on the signature procedure outlined in art. 218 TFEU and adds to previous cases, clarifying the proper...

Shaping the Joint Liability Landscape? The Broader Consequences of WS v Frontex for EU Law

Insight

Abstract: The Insight delves into the CJEU judgment of WS et al. v Frontex, the first action for damages against the European Border and Coast Guard Agency, Frontex, for human rights violations at the EU's external borders. Despite the prevalence of systemic violations and heightened attention to the agency's...

The Spitzenkandidaten Method and the European Material Constitution

Highlight

Keywords: Spitzenkandidat – lead candidate – material constitution – European Commission – Parliament – art. 17(7) TEU.

Legal studies on the method for the appointment of the President of the Commission, known as Spitzenkandidaten, are not frequent. Yet this method has been known and discussed at least for...

The EU and Russian Aggression: Perspectives from Kant, Hobbes, and Machiavelli

Insight

Abstract: This Insight examines the stance the EU should adopt towards the Russian invasion of Ukraine on the basis of the political thought of Immanuel Kant, Thomas Hobbes, and Niccolò Machiavelli. Taking as its starting point Josep Borrell’s comment that “we are too much Kantians and not enough Hobbesians” at the 2022 EU Ambassadors’...

Sanctions and the Geopolitical Commission: The War over Ukraine and the Transformation of EU Governance

Insight

Abstract: As a result of the invasion of Ukraine, the Commission has been increasing its weight throughout the EU sanctions process. This transformation is visible in the formation, implementation and communication of sanctions. Formulation has become less member state-driven, implementation has undergone some steps towards centralisation, and...

Bumpy Road of Ukraine Towards the EU Membership in Time of War: “Accession Through War” v “Gradual Integration”

Insight

Abstract: The candidate country status for Ukraine was justified and widely supported by the EU institutions and EU Member States because of Russia’s brutal invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. However, Ukraine’s accession to the EU is not going to be an easy ride. It is the first case in history of EU integration when a candidate country that...

The Preliminary Ruling Procedure 2.0

Insight

Abstract: The end of 2022 saw the publication of the proposal for reform of the preliminary ruling procedure, drafted by the Court of Justice of the EU. If the proposal goes through, it will bring about one of the most significant changes in the EU judicial system in its seventy years’ history. In this Insight, I start with an overview of the...

Five Surgical Strikes on the Treaties of the European Union

Insight

An Unusual Insight: A short premise by the Board of Editors. This is an unusual Insight. It does not look at the existing law of the Union but rather at its possible and auspicious development. It does not ad-dress only the scholarly world, but also the much wider circle of persons interested in the future of the Union. In spite of this feature, or...

The Court of Justice Finally Rules on the Analogical Application of Art. 351 TFEU: End of the Story?

Highlight

Keywords: article 351 TFEU – prior agreements – Member States international obligations – treaty conflict – conflict clause – analogical application.

As is well-known, art. 351 TFUE is a so-called conflict clause within the meaning of art. 30(2) of the Vienna Convention of the Law of Treaties. Conflict rules are common...

Pages

e-Journal

European Forum

Archive

e-Journal

Forum Européen

Archives

e-Journal

Forum europeo

Archivio

e-Journal

Foro Europeo

Archive