National Constitutional Identity and European Integration

National Constitutional Identity and European Integration PDF

Author: Alejandro Saiz Arnaiz (jurist)

Publisher:

Published: 2013

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9781780681603

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Over the past few years, 'national constitutional identity' has become the new buzzword in European constitutionalism. Much has been written about the concept involving the Member States' national constitutional identities: it has been welcomed for (finally) accommodating constitutional particularities in EU law, demonized for potentially disintegrating the EU, and wielded as a 'sword' by certain constitutional courts. Scholars, judges, and advocates in general have rendered the concept currently so fashionable and, yet, so ambivalent, that an in-depth analysis is warranted to put some order into the intense debate over constitutional identity. This collection brings together a series of contributions in order to shed some light into the dark corners of constitutional identity. To this end, a threefold approach has been followed: a conceptual or philosophical approach, an approach based on EU law, and an analysis of the case-law of several European courts. First, the book explores what constitutional identity means and who decides on it. Further, the contributions analyze (and at times unveil) the areas that might collide or at least interact with constitutional identity. Among other issues, the book touches upon EU law primacy , Article 53 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights, EU criminal law and the essential functions of the State, and the existence of an EU 'constitutional core' enjoyable and enforceable through EU citizenship. Finally, the book deals with the case-law of European courts on national constitutional identity, including the perspective of various national constitutional courts, such as those of Eastern and Central European Member States, the Court of Justice of the European Union, and the much-less analyzed European Court of Human Rights. (Series: Law and Cosmopolitan Values - Vol. 4)

Limitations of National Sovereignty through European Integration

Limitations of National Sovereignty through European Integration PDF

Author: Rainer Arnold

Publisher: Springer

Published: 2016-02-25

Total Pages: 197

ISBN-13: 9401774714

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The book considers the changes which national sovereignty has undergone through the supranational European integration. In various contributions by renowned academics and high judges demonstrate the serious impacts of supranationality on the EU member states and even on third countries which are connected with the EU by international treaties. It becomes clear that primacy of EU law, the most significant expression of supra-nationality, collides with national sovereignty as anchored in the national constitutions. The studies clearly show that most member states do not fully deny EU law primacy but are aware of the need to find an adequate balance between the supranational and the national orders. The result from the analyses of the authors from various European countries is that the upcoming constitutional paradigm is “constitutional identity”, a concept established by jurisprudence in Germany, France, Czech Republic (without being named so) and debated also in Poland which, herself, denies supranational impact on the national Constitution entirely. Studies on selected EU member states clarify the specific national approaches towards the limitations of their sovereignty as developed by the constitutional jurisprudence (Poland, Czech Republic, Hungary, Romania, Italy, Germany with comparative references to United Kingdom and France). It is illuminated that traditionally strong sovereignty concepts (UK, France) are considerably relativized and functionally opened towards the integration challenges. Basic issues are furthermore reflected, such as the supranational impact on the State’s power to reform its Constitution, the relation of national and constitutional identity and the national and supranational perspectives of identity. The book also includes Europe beyond the EU by research on the supranational character of association treaties (from a Ukrainian perspective) and on the Europeanization of a third country preparing EU membership (Albania).

National Identity in EU Law

National Identity in EU Law PDF

Author: Elke Cloots

Publisher: OUP Oxford

Published: 2015-02-12

Total Pages: 414

ISBN-13: 019105349X

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Despite nearly sixty years of European integration, neither nations nor national loyalties have withered away. On the contrary, national identity rhetoric seems on the rise, not only in politics but also in legal discourse. Lately we have seen a rise in the number of Member States invoking their national identity in an attempt to justify a derogation from a requirement imposed on them by a Treaty article or an EU legislative act, or to legitimize a particular national reading of such an EU norm. Despite this, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) has yet to develop a coherent approach to such arguments, or express a vision of the role national identity should play in EU law. Elke Cloots undertakes this task by providing a principled and coherent scheme for the adjudication of disputes involving claims based on the national identity of a Member State. Should arguments involving national identity be legally relevant? If yes, how should the ECJ approach such identity-related interests? Cloots crafts a normative framework to assist the ECJ in striking the right balance between European integration and respect for the identity concerns at issue. The book combines rigorous theoretical inquiry with thorough analysis of the European Treaties and case law, with particular attention paid to litigation involving domestic measures concerning the national system of government, constitutional rights protections, and language policy. Clarifying the issues at stake and presenting a solution to these problems, this book will be an invaluable resource for the academics, lawyers, and policy makers in the field.

National Constitutions and EU Integration

National Constitutions and EU Integration PDF

Author: Stefan Griller

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

Published: 2022-08-25

Total Pages: 863

ISBN-13: 1509906746

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Do individual constitutions, and the legal cultures underlying them, pose an obstacle to future EU integration? This ambitious collection brings together reports from all the European Member States, systematically setting out their individual constitutional guarantees. In doing so, it tracks possible roadblocks to the future evolution of European integration. Written by recognised authorities in each Member State, it offers an authoritative and rigorous overview of the European Union's constitutional landscape. Its single-structure approach allows for comparison while maintaining consistency. It will become the standard reference work for academics, students and practitioners in the field of European Union law and integration.

The Foundations of the EU as a Polity

The Foundations of the EU as a Polity PDF

Author: Massimo Fichera

Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing

Published: 2018-08-31

Total Pages: 224

ISBN-13: 1785363905

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In this insightful book, Massimo Fichera provides an original account of European integration as a process. He argues that European constitutionalism has been informed from its earliest stages by a meta-rationale, which is expressed by security and fundamental rights as discourses of power. Employing this descriptive and normative conceptual framework to analyse the development of the EU as a polity, chapters cover significant recent events such as the Eurozone crisis, the refugee crisis, the rule of law crisis, Brexit and the constitutional identity crisis.

National Constitutions in European and Global Governance: Democracy, Rights, the Rule of Law

National Constitutions in European and Global Governance: Democracy, Rights, the Rule of Law PDF

Author: Anneli Albi

Publisher: Springer

Published: 2019-05-29

Total Pages: 1522

ISBN-13: 9462652732

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This two-volume book, published open access, brings together leading scholars of constitutional law from twenty-nine European countries to revisit the role of national constitutions at a time when decision-making has increasingly shifted to the European and transnational level. It offers important insights into three areas. First, it explores how constitutions reflect the transfer of powers from domestic to European and global institutions. Secondly, it revisits substantive constitutional values, such as the protection of constitutional rights, the rule of law, democratic participation and constitutional review, along with constitutional court judgments that tackle the protection of these rights and values in the transnational context, e.g. with regard to the Data Retention Directive, the European Arrest Warrant, the ESM Treaty, and EU and IMF austerity measures. The responsiveness of the ECJ regarding the above rights and values, along with the standard of protection, is also assessed. Thirdly, challenges in the context of global governance in relation to judicial review, democratic control and accountability are examined. On a broader level, the contributors were also invited to reflect on what has increasingly been described as the erosion or ‘twilight’ of constitutionalism, or a shift to a thin version of the rule of law, democracy and judicial review in the context of Europeanisation and globalisation processes. The national reports are complemented by a separately published comparative study, which identifies a number of broader trends and challenges that are shared across several Member States and warrant wider discussion. The research for this publication and the comparative study were carried out within the framework of the ERC-funded project ‘The Role and Future of National Constitutions in European and Global Governance’. The book is aimed at scholars, researchers, judges and legal advisors working on the interface between national constitutional law and EU and transnational law. The extradition cases are also of interest to scholars and practitioners in the field of criminal law. Anneli Albi is Professor of European Law at the University of Kent, United Kingdom. Samo Bardutzky is Assistant Professor of Constitutional Law at the University of Ljubljana, Slovenia.

The Abuse of Constitutional Identity in the European Union

The Abuse of Constitutional Identity in the European Union PDF

Author: Julian Scholtes

Publisher: Oxford University Press

Published: 2023-09

Total Pages: 241

ISBN-13: 019888317X

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The idea of constitutional identity has been central to the negotiation of authority between EU and national constitutional orders. Many national constitutional courts have declared that the reach of EU law is limited by certain core elements of the national constitution, often labelled 'constitutional identity'. With the rise of illiberal democracies within the EU, the idea of constitutional identity has increasingly come under criticism, being seen as easily embedded in authoritarian, nativist rhetoric and vulnerable to being abused. In The Abuse of Constitutional Identity in the European Union, Julian Scholtes provides novel insights into how European authoritarians have utilised the concept of constitutional identity to further their illiberal goals. Employing a comparative theoretical perspective, his book identifies the factors behind legitimate constitutional identity claims and critically analyses the ways in which these claims can be abused. Scholtes examines abuses of constitutional identity in three distinct theoretical dimensions: generative, substantive, and relational. The generative dimension looks at how constitutional identity claims come about, while the substantive dimension examines a claim's broader relation to a normative theory of constitutionalism. The relational dimension, on the other hand, considers how constitutional identity claims are advanced and whether they are employed as a means of constitutional dialogue or constitutional disengagement.

Fixing the Euro Within the National Constitutional Guardrails

Fixing the Euro Within the National Constitutional Guardrails PDF

Author: Frederik Behre

Publisher: Kluwer Law International B.V.

Published: 2023-07-14

Total Pages: 527

ISBN-13: 9403541261

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EU fiscal integration is indispensable to establishing a stable single currency in the long run. However, this integration is proving ever more difficult in light of increasing national constitutional opposition. The author of this groundbreaking book shows that this dilemma between EU fiscal integration and national constitutional limits can be refuted. He provides a structured, comparative overview and outlook on how the available national constitutional space can be adapted to the political aspirations aiming at implementing EU fiscal integration steps while at the same time effectively protecting the national constitutional values at stake. Beginning with a macro-comparative assessment of Finland and Germany – two countries which have comprehensively dealt with Eurocrisis-issues in largely contrasting constitutional ways – and continuing with a comparative assessment of the specific French, German, Polish, and Spanish constitutional (identity) limits, EU fiscal integration steps are tested against the charted national constitutional space to determine their attainability. The resulting overview identifies best practices that can be employed to locate constitutional space for EU fiscal integration while enhancing the protection of core constitutional principles. The analysis addresses such specific areas as the following: constitutional red-line limits vs. flexible or mutable constitutional approaches to EU fiscal integration; strict constitutional identity limits that formulate obstacles to the attainment of EU fiscal integration; how national constitutional authorities perceive and portray the EU in their respective approaches; integration measures as an increase in the impact of sovereign powers vs. loss of autonomous decision-making; application of national constitutional frameworks during the Eurocrisis; ex ante constitutional review and ex post judicial scrutiny in representative Member States; national budgetary responsibility and fiscal autonomy; emergency budgetary instruments; and funding options for fiscal integration. The analysis throughout highlights the important role EU integration plays in stabilizing core national constitutional values in light of such complex challenges as the COVID-19 pandemic, the current Russian war of aggression against Ukraine and the required common defence strategies, but also climate change and digitalization. In its innovative response to the urgent challenge of feasible EMU reforms to stabilize the euro, this book displays how national constitutional systems can address EU (fiscal) integration in a more flexible and yet more effective manner, how EU integration steps can engage with national constitutional concerns in a more structured manner, as well as specifically hownational parliaments can be integrated and play a decisive role even when budgetary and fiscal powers are conferred at the EU level, thereby identifying a future model for EU cooperation in politically important competence areas. It thus offers a constructive outlook on achievable fiscal integration steps which will prove of inestimable value to lawyers, judges, and policymakers at the national and EU levels.

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