The reform of the European Constitution continues to dominate news headlines and has provoked a massive debate, unprecedented in the history of EU law. Against this backdrop Monica Claes' book offers a "bottom up" view of how the constitution might work, taking the viewpoint of the national courts as her starting point, and at the same time returning to fundamental principles in order to interrogate the myths of Community law. Adopting a broad, comparative approach, she analyzes the basic doctrines of Community law from both national constitutional perspectives as well as the more usual European perspective. Her comparative analysis encompasses the law in France, Belgium, Denmark, the Netherlands, Germany, Ireland, Italy and the United Kingdom and in the course of her inquiry discusses a wide variety of prominent problems. The book argues that the new Constitution must accommodate the national perspective if it is to prove effective.
Author(s): Monica Claes
Year: 2006
Language: English
Pages: 771
Half Title Page......Page 1
Half Title verso......Page 2
Title Page......Page 3
Title verso......Page 4
Acknowledgements......Page 5
Contents......Page 7
Table of Cases......Page 12
Introduction: The Judge, his Mandate, the National Constitution and European Union Law......Page 47
I. Setting the Stage......Page 49
II. The Theoretical Framework......Page 73
Part 1: The National Courts as Common Courts of European Law......Page 85
1. Introduction......Page 87
2.1. THE GENERAL PICTURE......Page 91
2.2. THE NETHERLANDS......Page 94
2.3. FRANCE......Page 96
2.4. BELGIUM......Page 98
2.5. LUXEMBOURG......Page 99
2.6. GERMANY......Page 100
2.7. ITALY......Page 101
2.8. CONCLUSION......Page 102
3.1. INTRODUCTION: NATIONAL COURTS AS COMMUNITY COURTS......Page 104
3.2. HINTS OF A ROLE FOR NATIONAL COURTS IN THE TREATIES......Page 106
3.3. THE COMMUNITY MANDATE OF THE NATIONAL COURTS......Page 113
4. The Duty to Review National Law: the 'Simmenthal Mandate'......Page 115
4.1. THE DOCTRINE OF DIRECT EFFECT......Page 116
4.2. THE DOCTRINE OF SUPREMACY......Page 143
4.3. DIRECT EFFECT AND SUPREMACY: THE ‘SIMMENTHAL MANDATE’......Page 154
4.4. SUPREMACY BEYOND DIRECT EFFECT?......Page 160
4.5. CONCLUSION......Page 163
5. Refining the Mandate: Second Generation Issues......Page 165
5.1. THE PRINCIPLE OF PROCEDURAL AUTONOMY......Page 166
5.2. FROM A ‘PRINCIPLE’ OF STRUCTURAL SUPREMACY TO THE PRINCIPLE OF FULL EFFECTIVENESS......Page 170
5.3. THE PRINCIPLE OF EFFECTIVE JUDICIAL PROTECTION......Page 181
5.4. THE REQUIREMENT OF UNIFORM APPLICATION OF COMMUNITY LAW......Page 186
5.5. INTERMEDIATE CONCLUDING REMARKS......Page 187
5.6. CHANGING THE PERSPECTIVE: THE CREATION OF NEW REMEDIES......Page 189
6.1. INTRODUCTION......Page 195
6.2. GRADUAL ACCEPTANCE OF THE DUTY OF JUDICIAL REVIEW BY THE DOMESTIC COURTS: A BIRD’S EYE VIEW......Page 196
6.3 FINAL REMARKS......Page 210
7.1. INTRODUCTION......Page 212
7.2. THE CLASSIC DICHOTOMY: MONISM AND DUALISM......Page 213
7.3. WHAT RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN NATIONAL AND COMMUNITY LAW: IN SEARCH OF A DOCTRINAL BASIS......Page 219
7.4. THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE COMMUNITY AND NATIONAL LEGAL ORDER IN THE CASE LAW OF THE COURT OF JUSTICE......Page 225
7.6. DEFINING THE COMMUNITY LEGAL ORDER FROM THE NATIONAL PERSPECTIVE......Page 233
7.7. CLOSING REMARKS......Page 258
8.1. THE PLACE OF THE COURTS IN THE NATIONAL CONSTITUTIONAL SYSTEM......Page 260
8.2. THE COURT OF JUSTICE AND THE JURISDICTIONAL ISSUE......Page 268
8.3. THE NATIONAL ANSWER......Page 270
9.1. ‘LEGALIST’ EXPLANATIONS......Page 292
9.2. JUDICIAL DIALOGUE......Page 295
9.3. THE WIDER CONTEXT: NATIONAL CONSTITUTIONAL LAW ON TREATIES......Page 298
9.4. THE WIDER CONTEXT: THE GENERAL INCREASEOF CONSTITUTIONAL REVIEW......Page 299
9.5. THE EMPOWERMENT THESIS......Page 301
9.6. THE INTER-COURT COMPETITION ARGUMENT......Page 303
9.7. CROSS-FERTILISATION......Page 304
9.8. NATIONAL LEGAL CULTURES......Page 306
9.9. LA DOCTRINE AND PERSONALITIES ON THE BENCH…......Page 308
9.10. …AND BEYOND......Page 309
9.12. THE PROPORTION OF COMMUNITY LAW CASES IN DOMESTIC PROCEEDINGS......Page 310
9.13. FINAL REMARKS......Page 311
10. Excursion: The 'Costanzo Mandate' of Administrative Authorities......Page 312
11.1. INTRODUCTION......Page 325
11.2. STATE LIABILITY FOR BREACH OF COMMUNITY LAW BEFORE FRANCOVICH......Page 327
11.3. LIABILITY OF THE LEGISLATING STATE IN NATIONAL LAW......Page 332
11.4. THE CASE OF INFRINGEMENTS OF COMMUNITY LAW: PRE-FRANCOVICH DECISIONS OF NATIONAL COURTS......Page 347
11.5. NON-CONTRACTUAL LIABILITY OF THE COMMUNITY......Page 359
11.6. THE EUROPEAN PERSPECTIVE: THE COURT’S CASE LAW ON GOVERNMENTAL LIABILITY FOR BREACH OF COMMUNITY LAW......Page 364
11.7. LIABILITY OF THE STATE: THE NATIONAL ANSWER......Page 392
11.8. CONCLUSION......Page 428
Part 2: The Court of Justice and National Constitutional Jurisdiction: La Guerre des Juges?......Page 431
12. Introduction......Page 433
13. Introducing the Actors: 'Courts Having Constitutional Jurisdiction'......Page 437
13.1. DEFINING THE ACTORS: NATIONAL COURTS HAVING CONSTITUTIONAL JURISDICTION......Page 438
13.2. THE EUROPEAN COURT OF JUSTICE AS A RIVAL CONSTITUTIONAL COURT......Page 445
13.3. A STRENUOUS CONSTITUTIONAL DIALOGUE......Page 469
14.1. CONSTITUTIONAL COURTS AND THE ‘SIMMENTHAL MANDATE’: ARE THE CONSTITUTIONAL COURTS UNDER THE SAME MANDATE AS ORDINARY COURTS?......Page 498
15.1. THE EUROPEAN PERSPECTIVE......Page 511
15.2. THE NATIONAL PERSPECTIVE......Page 515
15.3. PREVENTIVE CONSTITUTIONAL REVIEW OF THE TREATIES: A FEW OBSERVATIONS......Page 537
16.1. THE EUROPEAN PERSPECTIVE......Page 541
16.2. THE NATIONAL PERSPECTIVE......Page 546
16.3. CONCLUDING REMARKS......Page 578
17.1. THE EUROPEAN PERSPECTIVE......Page 581
17.2. THE NATIONAL PERSPECTIVE......Page 587
17.3. CONCLUDING REMARKS......Page 603
18.1. THE EUROPEAN PERSPECTIVE......Page 605
18.2. THE NATIONAL PERSPECTIVE......Page 640
18.3. CONCLUDING REMARKS......Page 691
Part 3: The National Courts' Mandate and the Future of the European Union......Page 697
19. Introduction......Page 699
20.1. PAST CONSTITUTION BUILDING: THE IGC MODEL......Page 701
20.2. THE CONVENTION MODEL: THE CONVENTION PREPARING THE EU CHARTER ON FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS......Page 702
20.3. THE CONVENTION ON THE FUTURE OF EUROPE......Page 704
20.4. CONCLUDING REMARKS......Page 711
21.1. THE CURRENT SITUATION: REVOLT OR REVOLUTION, OR COEXISTENCE?......Page 712
21.2. PRIMACY IN THE EUROPEAN CONSTITUTION?......Page 717
21.3. THE TREATY ESTABLISHING A CONSTITUTION FOR EUROPE......Page 721
21.4. NATIONAL PRIMACY PROVISIONS......Page 722
21.5. THE CONCEPT OF DIRECT EFFECT......Page 724
22.1. GENERAL OBSERVATIONS......Page 726
22.2. THE TREATY ESTABLISHING A CONSTITUTION FOR EUROPE......Page 728
23.1. REMINDER: THE CURRENT SITUATION......Page 730
23.2. THE EU CHARTER OF FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS......Page 732
23.3. ACCESSION TO THE EUROPEAN CONVENTION ON HUMAN RIGHTS......Page 746
23.4. ACCESSION AND/OR CHARTER?......Page 753
23.5. THE TREATY ESTABLISHING A CONSTITUTION FOR EUROPE......Page 754
24.1. THE CURRENT SITUATION......Page 755
24.2. SOLVING THE COMPETENCE ISSUE......Page 757
24.3. CONCLUDING REMARKS......Page 776
25. Conclusion......Page 778
Bibliography......Page 781
