EU Constitutional Law

This title is a comprehensive textbook of EU constitutional law, setting out the structure, values, procedures, and policies of the European Union. It is a first point of reference for issues of EU constitutional law. The book encompasses six major parts. It contains an extensive analysis of the key constitutional principles governing the exercise of competences by the Union and the balance of power between the Union and its Member States, followed by an in-depth anaylsis of EU citizenship and the four freedoms, followed by an overview of the main internal and external policy domains. The third part addresses the role and workings of the various institutions (European Council, Council, European Parliament, Commission, European Court of Justice, and European Central Bank), the position of the Member States of the Union, and various other institutional matters. Part four explores the various decision-making processes, addressing not only the legislative and executive decision-making, but also the budget, CFSP, and external action. The fifth part looks at the legal instruments and the position of EU law in the EU and national legal orders, with an attention to the key principles of primary and direct effect, and the role of fundamental rights and the Charter of Fundamental Rights. The final part sets out the complete and coherent system of judicial protection in the European Union, offering an overview of the various courses of action before the EU courts and in the national legal orders to enforce EU law or to obtain judicial protection.

Auteur

Koen Lenaerts is President of the Court of Justice of the European Union and Professor of European Law at KU Leuven. He has been Legal Secretary at the Court of Justice of the European Communities, Professor at the College of Europe, member of the Brussels Bar, Visiting Professor at Harvard Law School, Judge at the Court of First Instance of the European Communities, and Judge and Vice-President of the Court of Justice of the European Union. Piet Van Nuffel is a member of the Legal Service of the European Commission and Professor of European Law at KU Leuven. He has held various posts within the European Commission and the Court of Justice and General Court of the European Union and has been a visiting professor at the College of Europe (Natolin). Tim Corthaut is an auditor in the Belgian Council of State (legislative action). He is Associate Professor of European Public Law at Vrije Universiteit Brussel (Belgium), and Visiting Professor of European Law at Universitat Wien (Austria).