CONSTITUTIONAL LAW OF THE EU

Assessment Criteria for legal regulation of the EU

Assessment Criteria for Constitutional Law of the EU

Introduction

The idea of Constitutional Law of European Union (EU) is the governing of society by fundamental principles, usually in a written charter, as a way to keep society faithful to the core values that support it. Fundamental principles on which a constitution is generally based include the structure and operation of government; separation of powers among different branches of government; judicial review (explicit or implicit); and fundamental rights. While a written constitution is the norm today, it is entirely possible to have such core organizing principles exist in unwritten form, as a shared understanding among society's members, such as the traditional practice in England. Historically, constitutions have delineated the bounds of nation-states. Today, however, there is a movement toward regionalization of nations, and a “constitution” may cover a region as well.

The European Union (EU) is the most successful try at local integration in history. Founded by six countries in 1957, it had 27 members by 2007. Its origins lie in the reconstruction of western Europe after World War II, made possible by the United States through the Marshall Plan. Although created by international treaties, several factors have combined to give it many features of a constitutional system: an ideology uniting integration and federalism, judicial interpretation, development of political institutions, citizenship, human rights, and establishment of common policies. This research paper will focuses on the major doctrinal division faced in most constitutions, governmental authority and power versus basic fundamental rights and related problems. A delineation of governmental power and a delineation of fundamental rights are complementary strategies to outline the authority of government. Delineation of official authority limits government to enumerated power bases; rights check government actions. Still, the treatment of powers versus rights often operates pursuant to different doctrines.

Discussion and Analysis

Today, the EU is a divided-power system, embodying a complex division of power between supranational authorities and the member states. It embraces regional integration in numerous policy areas. It also represents a comparative law laboratory, combining elements of common law, civil law, Dutch law, and Scandinavian legal systems. A European Constitution is now open for debate and approval by national political processes. Nevertheless, the EU is neither a state nor an international organization. It constitutes instead a “new legal order,” a sui generis regional political and legal system.

Scholars often trace the origins of European integration to the declaration by French Foreign Minister Robert Schuman, on May 9, 1950, of a plan for supranational management of the French and German coal and steel industries. The plan was encapsulated in the Treaty of Paris (1951) establishing the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) for a period of 50 years. In 1957, two different Treaties of Rome created the European Economic Community (EEC) and the European Atomic Energy Community (EAEC). In 1992, the Treaty of Maastricht established the EU, based on the ECSC, EEC (now called the European Community, EC), and EAEC as ...