20 Oktober 2020
Reinventing the European Union through Article 50?
Lech Wałęsa helped bringing down the Iron Curtain – now he takes his revolutionary spirit to the EU. His radical approach of institutional reform through abandonment of the current treaties deserves serious consideration. Continue reading >>
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10 Juni 2020
Taming the Karlsruhe Dragon
In order to reconcile the conflicting claims for primacy within the parameters set by the BVerfG and EU law, the German parliament could (and should) amend the procedural rules for the BVerfG: the first, and most fundamental of these changes would provide for an order to conduct a referendum on whether Germany should exercise its right to withdraw from the EU under Art. 50 TEU as the only definitive judicial remedy available if a conflict between EU law and the German constitution cannot otherwise be resolved. Continue reading >>28 April 2020
On Doctrinal Contortions and Legal Fetishes
There seems to be a belief – especially persistent among some EU legal scholars – that even the largest political problems can be solved through the law. It suggests that any balance of authority and legitimacy between the EU and the Member States is, in fact, a mere technicality of institutional configuration, and a mere doctrinal sleight of hand would suffice to tip the scale of authority one way or another. This belief also seems to be underlying a recent blogpost by Christophe Hillion. Continue reading >>
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27 April 2020
Poland and Hungary are withdrawing from the EU
The latest developments in Poland and Hungary beg the question of what the EU may, or indeed shall do when a Member State no longer fulfils the prerequisites of membership. Can the Union force that state to meet its duties against its will? Or should it ultimately acknowledge that state’s choice, and proceed with its orderly retreat from the EU legal order? Continue reading >>20 Dezember 2019
Avoiding the next Brexit Cliff-Edge
Boris Johnson wants to legally exclude the prolongation of the extension period of the Withdrawal Agreement. The way to prolong it nevertheless would be an amendment of the Withdrawal Agreement itself. Some argue now that any other way to change the transition period than its prolongation by the JC is legally impossible. Another reading of the legal situation is, however, supportable. Continue reading >>10 Oktober 2019
Why the European Council Must not Reject an Article 50 Extension Request
As a matter of EU law, the European Council is not entitled to refuse the United Kingdom’s request for an extension, in the present circumstances. The decision to ask for an extension emanates from the United Kingdom’s highest authority, its sovereign Parliament. It is a democratic decision which the EU must respect, for else it would be expelling a Member State against its own sovereign and democratic will. Continue reading >>10 Dezember 2018
Sovereign Choices: The CJEU’s Ruling on Exit from Brexit
In today’s Wightman judgment, the CJEU has ruled that a Member State may unilaterally revoke its notified intention to withdraw from the EU prior to that withdrawal taking effect. The Court is clearly signalling that membership of the European Union, and the rights and responsibilities which come with it, is voluntary. As political messages go, that is a pretty big message. Continue reading >>07 Dezember 2018
Can an Art. 50 TEU withdrawal notice be revoked? How Advocate General Bordona offered a legal Trojan horse to Union law
In his opinion given in the Case Wightman et. al., Advocate General Bordona pleads for the possibility to revoke the notification of withdrawal. Although it may be politically and economically desirable to keep the UK in the Union, this does not justify the introduction of a “legal Trojan horse” into the European law order by interpreting the European treaties in a one-sided manner. Continue reading >>08 Oktober 2018
Can An Article 50 Withdrawal Notice be Revoked? The CJEU is Asked to Decide
The legal issue of whether the United Kingdom can change its mind and revoke – unilaterally – its notified intention to withdraw from the European Union has been a matter of academic and professional conjecture since the 2016 referendum. An authoritative interpretation of the issue may be delivered by Christmas following the lodging on 3 October 2018 of a request by the Scottish Court of Session for a preliminary ruling in Case C-621/18 Wightman and Others. Continue reading >>08 Juni 2018