Keywords: EU judges' appointment procedure – “255 Committee” – judicial independence – art. 19 TEU – art. 254 TFEU – judicial review.
In its judgment of 29 July 2024, delivered in the Valančius case,[1] the Court of Justice ruled, for the first time, on the limits that...
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...
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...
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...
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...
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’...
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...
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...
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...
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...