Supremacy of the eu law

A which conflict with European Union law

B there is a conflict between the laws of Member States and European Union law

C until recently

D there is a conflict between the laws of Member States and European Union law

E if there is one

F which has relevant provisions in these areas

In Costa v ENEL [1964] ECR 585 the European Court of Justice held that in situations where 1, European Union law prevails, because "a subsequent unilateral act incompatible with the concept of the Community cannot prevail". However, 2 the European Union does not prevent Member States from maintaining or introducing more stringent laws on working conditions, social policy, consumer protection and the environment, so long as these laws are compliant with the Treaty of Rome, 3. Some courts in Member States have resented the supremacy doctrine though it is not commonly challenged and the European Court of Justice has encouraged legal interpretation in light of European Union law by courts in Member States as alternative to repealing or amending laws of Member States 4. A source of tension has historically been the relationship between the constitutions of member states and European Union law. Unlike the UK, most continental European Member States have written constitutions and some have constitutional courts with the exclusive power to interpret the national constitution. The European Court of Justice has rules that such courts must apply European Union law in its entirety, to avoid any conflicting provisions of national law. 5 the French constitutional court has regarded itself not empowered to review administrative measures, as it did not recognise the review power and duty provided to it by European Union law. The German and Italian constitutional courts initially refused to strike down national laws which conflicted with European Union law. The legal system of the European Union depends heavily on the courts in Member States to acknowledge and uphold European Union law, and to follow the interpretation of the European Court of Justice 6. The supremacy doctrine has found widespread acceptance, though the direct and indirect application of European Union law still needs to fully establish itself.

Research task

Exercise 9. Find out the details of the case Costa v ENEL [1964] ECR 585 and discuss them in class.

Writing

Exercise 10. Basing on the main ideas of the text, draw a scheme showing all the types of Union acts. Then, write down short explanations referring to each act.

Exercise 11. Write a plan and a short summary of the text.

Speaking

Exercise 12. Discuss the particularities of the main legislative bodies of the EU: the Council, the Parliament and the Commission.

Unit 4

UNION LAW

Discussion

1. In your opinion, is European Union law part of international law?

2. What are the primary sources of Union law?

3. Does the legal order of the European Union resemble that of a federative state?

4. Is Union law a collection of national legislations?

5. Does Union law stem from national legislations?

Legal Terms

1	quasi governmental bodies	контролируемые государством, полугосударственные органы власти
2	primary Union law	первичное право Евросоюза
3	secondary/second Union law	вторичное, производное право Евросоюза
4	specific/separate legal order	особый, отличающийся правопорядок
5	municipal law	внутреннее право страны, внутригосударственное право, национальное право
6	cross-border situations	трансграничные ситуации
7	direct applicability	прямое применение
8	direct effect	прямое действие
9	primacy/precedence over national law have primacy (over)	примат, верховенство, главенствование (права ЕС) над национальным правом главенствовать (над)
10	binding effect	обязательный характер
11	raison d’être	фр. разумное основание, смысл (существования чего-либо), суть и смысл
12	invoke Union rules	применять, требовать применения, признания; ссылаться на нормы Евросоюза
13	be subject to Union law	регулироваться правом Евросоюза, подчиняться праву Евросоюза
14	uphold rights	признавать законность прав
15	corollary	итог, результат, последствие, следствие
16	compatibility of national law with Union rules	совместимость, сочетаемость национального права с нормами Евросоюза
17	discretionary latitude	свобода действий
18	uniform interpretation and application	единообразное, одинаковое толкование и применение
19	adhere to a Treaty	придерживаться договора, соблюдать договор
20	supplementary Protocols	дополнительные протоколы
21	the wording and the spirit of the Treaty	формулировка и дух договора
22	accord precedence	зд. отдавать предпочтение, воспользоваться
23	reciprocity	взаимность, принцип взаимности, талион
24	override	отвергать, отклонять, преодолевать
25	stem from the Treaty	возникать, проистекать, вытекать из договора