European Union and basic institutional framework

elective courses

(in Polish)

I. The general framework of the European Union

1. The structure of the European Union according to the Treaties.

2. The European Union membership: joining the EU.

3. The withdrawal from the European Union.

Basic reading:

- Alina Kaczorowska-Ireland, European Union Law, Routledge, 2017, pp. 40-57 (Chapter 2: Membership of the European Union).

Complementary reading:

- Christophe Hillion, “Accession and withdrawal in the Law of the European Union”, in Anthony Arnull/Damian Chalmers, The Oxford Handbook of European Union Law, Oxford University Press, Oxford, 2015, pp. 126-153.

II. The system of competences of the European Union

1.The system for the allocation of competences to the EU.

2. Types of competences.

3. Principles ruling the exercise of the European Union competences: subsidiarity and proportionality.

4. Enhanced cooperation.

Basic readings:

- Allan Rosas and Lorna Arnati. EU Constitutional law. An introduction, Hart Publishing, Oxford, 2nd edition, 2012 (Chapter 3. Marking the Territory: Principles Governing Union Competences)

- Robert Schütze, European Constitutional Law, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2nd ed., 2015, pp. 223-243 and 252-261 (Chapter 7 for competences and principle of subsidiarity).

Complementary reading:

- Robert Schütze, “EU competences: Existence and exercise”, in Anthony Arnull/Damian Chalmers, The Oxford Handbook of European Union Law, Oxford University Press, Oxford, 2015, pp. 75-103.

III. The institutional framework of the European Union

1. The Institutions of the European Union and the principle of single institutional framework.

2. The unfinished principle of separation of powers.

3. The role of the Member States in the enforcement of the EU law.

IV. The European Parliament and the role of national Parliaments

1. The Members of the European Parliament.

2. Tasks and powers of the European Parliament.

3. Internal organisation of the European Parliament.

4. The role of national Parliaments.

Basic reading:

- P.S.R.F. Mathijsen, Mathijsen´s guide to European Union law, Sweet and Maxwell, London, 11th ed., 2013, pp. 71-108 (Chapter 5: The Parliament).

V. The European Council

1. History and background of the European Council.

2. Composition and Presidency.

3. Tasks of the European Council.

4. Organisational aspects of the European Council.

Basic reading:

- P.S.R.F. Mathijsen, Mathijsen´s guide to European Union law, Sweet and Maxwell, London, 11th ed., 2013, pp. 105-108 (Chapter 6: The European Council).

VI. The Council of the European Union

1. Members of the Council.

2. Tasks and powers of the Council.

3. Organisational aspects of the Council.

Basic reading:

- P.S.R.F. Mathijsen, Mathijsen´s guide to European Union law, Sweet and Maxwell, London, 11th ed., 2013, pp. 109-124 (Chapter 7: The Council).

VII. The European Commission

1. The Members of the European Commission.

2. The Commission’s Tasks and Powers.

3. Rule of procedure and the Commission’s Staff.

Basic reading:

- P.S.R.F. Mathijsen, Mathijsen´s guide to European Union law, Sweet and Maxwell, London, 11th ed., 2013, pp. 125-143 (Chapter 8: The Commission).

VIII. The Court of Justice of the European Union

1. The judiciary in the European Union: The Court of Justice of the European Union and the national courts and judges.

2. Basic functions of the Court of Justice of the European Union.

3. The Court of Justice.

4. The General Court.

5. Specialised Courts: the former Civil Service Tribunal.

Basic reading:

- P.S.R.F. Mathijsen, Mathijsen´s guide to European Union law, Sweet and Maxwell, London, 11th ed., 2013, pp. 145-178 (Chapter 9: The Court of Justice of the European Union)

There are many other interesting textbooks on the Institutions of the European Union. Here you may find a selection of them:

- Damian Chalmers/Gareth Davis/Giorgio Monti, European Union Law, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 3rd ed., 2014, pp. 57-105 (Chapter 2: The EU institutions).

- Paul Craig/ Gráinne de Búrca, EU Law. Text, cases and materials, Oxford University Press, Oxford, 6th ed., 2015, pp. 32-72 (Chapter 2: The institutions).

- Robert Schütze, European Constitutional Law, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2nd ed., 2015, pp. 147-219 (Chapters 5 and 6: Governmental structure).

- Alina Kaczorowska-Ireland, European Union Law, Routledge, 2017, pp. 57-112 (Chapter 3: The institutional framework of the European Union).

GENERAL LEGAL MATERIALS

Students must own, at least, the three basic legal texts of the European Union legal order: The Treaty on the European Union, the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union and the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, in their consolidated versions. The three of them, as well as the rest of the European Union legal texts and the Court of Justice case law can be easily found in the open-access data base Eur-lex.

Specific legal texts, such as Regulations or Directives, are indicated above or will be given during the course.

Classroom