Law of the European Union: a Textbook for Master Students

Preface ......................................................................................................................10
Abbreviations ..........................................................................................................18
Chapter 1. Fundamentals of the EU ......................................................................31
1.1. The history of the European Union ...........................................................32
1.1.1. The short history of the European integration ....................................32
1.1.2. The Maastricht Treaty and the European Union .................................34
1.1.3. The Lisbon Treaty and the European Union ........................................37
1.2. Objectives and principles of the European Union ...................................41
1.2.1. Objectives of the European Communities/Union ................................41
1.2.2. The Principles of the European Union ................................................47
1.3. Competences of the EU...............................................................................50
1.4. Enhanced cooperation in the EU ...............................................................57
1.4.1. Enhanced cooperation in the EU: a defi nition and sources ................57
1.4.2. The basic concepts of enhanced cooperation ......................................59
1.4.3. The importance of enhanced cooperation for the future
of European integration .......................................................................59
1.4.4. The legal nature of enhanced cooperation acts ...................................62
1.4.5. The place of acts of enhanced cooperation in the structure
of European law ...................................................................................64
1.5. Membership in the EU ...............................................................................68
Chapter 2. Introduction to the EU law (DNU, NU OLA) ....................................77
2.1. Sources of law of the European Union ......................................................78
2.1.1. Defi nition and classifi cation of sources of law of the EU ....................78
2.1.2. Sources of primary law of the EU ........................................................81
2.1.3. Sources of “secondary law” of the EU ................................................89
2.1.4. Other sources of law of the EU ..........................................................100
2.2. Law-making in the EU .............................................................................103
2.2.1. Law-making process in the EU: concept, features, and subjects ......103
2.2.2. The procedure for reviewing and amending the constituent acts ......105
2.2.3. Procedures for the adoption of acts ...................................................108
2.2.4. “Soft” legal instruments in the system of EU law .............................112
2.3. The principles of EU law ..........................................................................117
2.3.1. The concept of the principles of EU law ............................................117
2.3.2. Sources of the EU legislative principles ............................................118
2.3.3. Classifi cation of the EU legislation principles ..................................120
2.4. Prejudice and Preliminary rulings in EU law ........................................124
2.4.1. The role of the preliminary rulings in EU law ...................................124
2.4.2. When referring a question is a right, and when a duty? ...................128
2.4.3. The main stages of the preliminary procedure ..................................130
2.5. EU law and international law ..................................................................134
2.6. The interaction of the EU law and Member States` national laws .......140
2.6.1. Principle of the EU law supremacy ...................................................140
2.6.2. Direct application and direct effect of EU law ..................................145
2.6.3. Approximation of national legislations of the EU States ...................148
2.7. Enforcement of EU law ............................................................................150
2.7.1. Enforcement of the EU law: general provisions ................................150
2.7.2. Control over observance of the EU law ............................................154
Chapter 3. EU’s institutional structure ...............................................................163
3.1. EU institutions ...........................................................................................164
3.1.1. European Parliament .........................................................................166
3.1.2. European Council ..............................................................................173
3.1.3. Council of the European Union .........................................................175
3.1.4. European Commission .......................................................................178
3.1.5. European Central Bank .....................................................................182
3.1.6. European Court of Auditors ..............................................................184
3.2. European Court system ............................................................................188
3.2.1. Court of Justice of the European Union: general provision..............188
3.2.2. The European Court of Justice as the highest court of the EU .........191
3.2.2.1. The European Court of Justice: general provision ...............191
3.2.2.2. Jurisdiction Court of Justice .................................................193
3.2.2.3. The procedure in the European Court of Justice ...................197
3.2.2.4. Judgments in the European Court of Justice .........................199
3.2.3. The General Court .............................................................................200
3.2.3.1. The General Court: general provisions ................................200
3.2.3.2. Jurisdiction of General Court ...............................................201
3.2.3.3. The proceedings.....................................................................202
3.2.4. Civil Service Tribunal ........................................................................204
3.3. EU bodies ...................................................................................................208
3.3.1. The European economic and social Committee ................................208
3.3.1.1. The European economic and social Committee:
General provisions ................................................................208
3.3.1.2. Internal structure of the Committee ......................................210
3.3.2. The Committee of the Regions in the European Union .....................211
3.3.2.1. The Committee of the Regions: general provisions ...............211
3.3.2.2. Internal structure of the Committee of the Regions...............215
3.3.3. European Ombudsman ......................................................................217
3.3.3.1. European Ombudsman: General provisions .........................217
3.3.3.2. The Competence of the Ombudsman .....................................218
3.3.4. European Data Protection Supervisor .....................................................220
3.3.4.1. European Data Protection Supervisor:
General provisions ................................................................220
3.3.4.2. European Data Protection Supervisor:
functions and structure ..........................................................221
3.4. The Civil Service of the European Union ...............................................224
3.4.1. General characteristics of the EU Civil Service ...............................224
3.4.2. The selection procedure for EU civil service .....................................228
3.5. Interaction between the EU and member-states ....................................231
Chapter 4. EU Citizenship (human dimension of the EU) ................................237
4.1. Legal status of a person in the EU ...........................................................238
4.1.1. Defi nition of the legal status of a person in the European Union .....238
4.1.2. Institute of legal status of person and citizen: a place in the system
of EU law and its sources ..................................................................239
4.1.3. Citizenship of the European Union ....................................................241
4.1.3.1. EU citizenship: the defi nition ................................................243
4.1.3.2. EU citizenship: the right to vote and stand as candidates
in municipal elections ............................................................246
4.1.3.3. EU citizenship: right of non-EU family members .................248
4.2. Protection of human rights in the EU .....................................................252
4.2.1. EU Charter of Fundamental Rights: the meaning and the content ...252
4.2.2. Human rights and freedoms under the EU Founding Treaties ..........255
4.2.3. The European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights and
the European Ombudsman ................................................................258
4.2.4. The European Union and the Council of Europe cooperation
in the fi eld of human rights protection ...............................................261
4.3. Schengen EU law .......................................................................................267
4.3.1. Schengen rules as a kind of “enhanced cooperation” ......................267
4.3.2. The Schengen process: background, genesis, sources .......................269
4.3.3. Schengen zone and the Schengen border: sources and regulation ....273
4.3.4. Schengen visa: sources, regulation....................................................276
4.3.5. Information and organizational support for the Schengen process ..278
4.3.6. Development and current problems of the Schengen acquis .............280
Сhapter 5. Four market freedoms .......................................................................283
5.1. EU internal market ...................................................................................284
5.1.1. Introduction in the EU internal market .............................................284
5.1.2. Legal Framework of the Internal Market ..........................................286
5.1.3. Single Market Act 2011 ......................................................................288
5.1.4. Single Market Act II 2012 ..................................................................290
5.2. Free movement of goods ...........................................................................292
5.2.1. Establishment of a the Customs Union ..............................................292
5.2.2. The principle of mutual recognition ..................................................296
5.2.3. Prohibition on Customs Duties and Charges Having
Equivalent Effect ................................................................................298
5.2.4. Defi nition of a Measure Equivalent to a Quantitative Restriction ....299
5.2.5. Exceptions to the Prohibition of MEQR ............................................301
5.3. Free movement of services .......................................................................304
5.3.1. Regulating the Service Market in EU ................................................304
5.3.2. Freedom of Services and Freedom of Establishment ........................306
5.3.3. Restrictions on the Freedom to Provide Services ..............................308
5.3.4. Directive of the European Parliament
and the Council No. 123/2006 on Services
in the Internal Market ........................................................................313
5.4. Free movement of persons .......................................................................315
5.4.1. Nature of Free Movement of Persons ................................................315
5.4.2. Freedom of movement of workers and their family members ............316
5.4.3. Right to Move and Reside within the Union in Secondary Law ........320
5.4.4. Restrictions on the Freedom of Establishment ..................................322
5.5. Free movement of capital .........................................................................326
5.5.1. Introduction in the free movement of capital .....................................326
5.5.2. The Development of the Law on the Free Movement of Capital .......328
5.5.3. Connection of Freedom of Capitals and Freedom of Establishment .332
5.5.4. Correlation of Freedom of Capitals and National Tax Systems ........337
5.5.5. The Third Country Dimension of Free Movement of Capitals ..........341
5.6. Economic and monetary union of EU ......................................................343
5.6.1. Purpose of Economic and Monetary Union .......................................343
5.6.2. Fazes of Economic and Monetary Union ...........................................345
5.6.3. Elements of Economic and Monetary Union ......................................347
5.6.4. The start of the euro area ...................................................................348
5.6.5. Economic and Monetary policy of EU ...............................................350
5.6.6. European System of Central Banks ....................................................351
Chapter 6. The EU Company law .........................................................................355
6.1. The EU Company law: general provisions ..............................................356
6.1.1. The Internal Market and EU Company law .......................................356
6.1.2. EU institutions in the area of company law ........................................363
6.1.3. EU bodies and agencies in the area of company law .........................369
6.1.4. The codifi cation of EU company law ..................................................373
6.2. Sources of EU Company Law ...................................................................381
6.2.1. The Directives on the commercial companies ....................................381
6.2.2. The Directives on disclosure of information .......................................384
6.2.3. The Directives on the reorganization ..................................................387
6.2.4. The Directive on single-member of private
limited liability companies ..................................................................389
6.3. European legal persons .............................................................................391
6.3.1. The European Economic Interest Grouping (EEIG) ..........................391
6.3.2. The European Company (SE) .............................................................394
6.3.3. The European Cooperative Society (SCE) .........................................397
6.3.4. New forms of European legal persons ................................................402
6.4. The Review of national company law of EU States ................................406
Chapter 7. The European Competition law .........................................................422
7.1. EU Competition Law: general provisions ...............................................423
7.1.1. EU Competition Law: introduction ....................................................423
7.1.2. The EU laws in the sphere of competition ..........................................423
7.1.3. Implementation of the international legal rules of competition
in the EU law ......................................................................................425
7.1.4. Spheres of the market competition in the EU .....................................426
7.1.5. The EU regulatory institutions in the sphere of market competition ..427
7.1.6. Legal measures of the protection of the market competition
in the EU .............................................................................................428
7.1.7. Violations of the competition rules .....................................................433
7.2. Restrictive trade practice ..........................................................................435
7.2.1. Horizontal agreements ........................................................................435
7.2.2. Vertical agreements ............................................................................436
7.2.3. Unlawful agreements ..........................................................................438
7.2.4. International cartel .............................................................................440
7.2.5. Exclusive purchasing agreement ........................................................441
7.3. Competition policy .....................................................................................442
7.3.1. Free Competition ................................................................................442
7.3.2. Competition policy ..............................................................................444
7.4. Anti-dumping regulation ...........................................................................449
7.4.1. The defi nition of dumping ...................................................................449
7.4.2. Formation of the EU anti-dumping legislation ..................................450
7.4.3. Anti-dumping procedures ....................................................................450
7.4.4. Initiation of the anti-dumping investigation .......................................452
7.4.5. Conducting of the anti-dumping investigation ...................................453
7.4.6. Decision on the results of the anti-dumping investigation .................455
7.4.7. Revision of anti-dumping measures ....................................................456
7.4.8. Terms of use of compensatory measures .............................................458
7.5. Restriction on competition ........................................................................460
7.5.1. Monopoly ............................................................................................460
7.5.2. Non – competition clause ...................................................................461
7.5.3. Oligopoly ............................................................................................462
7.5.4. Oligopsony ..........................................................................................463
7.5.5. Dominant position ..............................................................................463
7.5.6. Price agreement ..................................................................................464
7.5.7. Advertising malpractice ......................................................................465
7.5.8. Refusal to bid ......................................................................................468
7.5.9. Refusal to sell......................................................................................468
7.5.10. Voluntary restraint ............................................................................469
7.5.11. Comparative advertising ...................................................................469