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3451. Die EU im GATT/WTO-System

Author:
Dr. Nikolaos Lavranos
Publication Date:
05-2010
Content Type:
Journal Article
Abstract:
The first edition of this book, written by Peter Hilpold, professor at the University of Innsbruck, instantly became an important reference book on the relationship between the EU and the WTO, particularly on the German language market. With this third edition, Hilpold has updated the book without changing its main structure, a decision to be welcomed given that this structure, with each chapter opening with a historical perspective, is fundamental for understanding this complex topic. The book is divided into nine major chapters, which deal with the most important aspects of WTO law and its interaction with Community law. In addition, the book contains several indexes, including a useful index of persons.
Political Geography:
Europe

3452. The Free Movement of Capital and Foreign Direct Investment. The Scope of Protection in EU Law

Author:
Fernando Losada Fraga
Publication Date:
05-2010
Content Type:
Journal Article
Abstract:
Despite the fact that it is part of the economic freedoms on which the European integration project is said to be built, free movement of capital has never attracted the attention it deserves – at least as far as the English literature is concerned. This was understandable until the late 1980s, since this freedom was not politically fostered until then. However, two decades later just a couple of monographs are devoted exclusively to the matter, and not too many others deal with it within a broader context. The monograph under review from now on will be an indispensable reference on the matter: first, because of the depth of Hindelang's effort: it is his purpose to analyse foreign direct investment and fully to explain its scope and breadth. Therefore, he studies in detail the legal regime of the free movement of capital and its recent evolution; in fact, he scrutinizes the European Court of Justice's (ECJ) case law, which constitutes a major contribution to the debate in a field immersed in a series of continuous developments. In addition, the main importance of this book is the fact that it brings to the English literature on free movement of capital the intense and sharp German debate on economic law, and on the legal regime of capital movements in particular; and it does so acutely distinguishing the stances – and their nuances – of each relevant author towards each particular aspect of the legal regime.
Political Geography:
Europe

3453. Editorial: Lautsi: Crucifix in the Classroom Redux

Publication Date:
02-2010
Content Type:
Journal Article
Abstract:
There are few legal issues which still manage to evoke civic passion in the wider population. Increasingly, and sometimes for the wrong reasons, the place of religion in our public spaces has become one of them. In the age of the internet and Google we can safely assume that all readers of this Journal will have either read the Lautsi decision of the European Court of Human Rights or have read about it, thus obviating the need for the usual preliminaries. As is known, a Chamber of the Court held that the displaying in Italian public schools of the crucifix was a violation of the European Convention on Human Rights.
Topic:
Human Rights
Political Geography:
Europe

3454. Symposium: The Human Dimension of International Law: Introduction

Author:
Paola Gaeta
Publication Date:
02-2010
Content Type:
Journal Article
Abstract:
This symposium comprises the contributions presented by five distinguished international lawyers at the European University Institute in Florence in October 2008 on a very special occasion. Antonio Cassese ('Nino' to his friends and colleagues) had recently celebrated his 70th birthday and, as is customary in many European countries, a group of his former students and friends chose this occasion to celebrate his academic and professional career with the publication of a selection of his most important writings on the three branches of public international law he has most influenced – international humanitarian law, international human rights law, and international criminal law. The outcome was a book, The Human Dimension of International Law, published in summer 2008 by Oxford University Press, the intention of which is to shed light on Nino's intellectual approach to these three areas of public international law. The publication of this volume also provided an excellent occasion to convene a small number of friends and colleagues as a token of appreciation and admiration for his many achievements as an international lawyer. As Nino shies away from any personal limelight (indeed, I am certain he will be troubled by these few lines about him), it was decided that this meeting at the …
Topic:
International Law
Political Geography:
Europe

3455. The Legal Effect of Community Agreements: Maximalist Treaty Enforcement and Judicial Avoidance Techniques

Author:
Mario Mendez
Publication Date:
02-2010
Content Type:
Journal Article
Abstract:
It has been clear since a seminal ECJ ruling in the 1970s that the European Community is attached to a model of automatic treaty incorporation whereby the full panoply of Community law enforcement tools are available for the enforcement of Community Agreements. In the decades since, a rich body of case law has emerged concerning this growing body of treaty law to which the Community has become party. Much of this jurisprudence is testament to a maximalist approach to treaty enforcement which shares parallels with the approach to internal Community law. Most recently, however, the Intertanko ruling indicates that the ECJ is not averse to employing judicial avoidance techniques to preclude review where it is Community action that is challenged. The current trajectory of treaty enforcement is thus indicative of a twin-track approach whereby the ECJ is reluctant to transpose the maximalist approach to treaty enforcement which characterizes its contribution where action at the Member State level is challenged. Such a trajectory, built in accordance with the defensive submissions of the Community's political institutions, raises significant questions about the EU's much-vaunted commitment to international law.
Political Geography:
Europe

3456. Mark A. Pollack and Gregory C. Shaffer. When Cooperation Fails: The International Law and Politics of Genetically Modified Foods

Author:
Aaron Fellmeth
Publication Date:
02-2010
Content Type:
Journal Article
Abstract:
This book presents an engaging and thorough study of a seemingly intractable international trade dispute, primarily between the United States and Europe, over the dissemination of genetically engineered foods. The United States and several other countries have increasingly approved transgenic (also known as 'genetically modified' or 'GM') foods for public consumption, while the European Community (EC) has strongly resisted the introduction of this new technology. From 1998 to 2004, the EC imposed a moratorium on approvals for the marketing of transgenic foods in the EC. It continues to approve new marketing requests desultorily and to pursue an effective moratorium on the cultivation of transgenic species today, despite losing a challenge before the WTO Dispute Settlement Body brought by the United States.
Political Geography:
United States and Europe

3457. Eve C. Landau and Yves Beigbeder. From ILO Standards to EU Law: The Case of Equality between Men and Women at Work

Author:
Nellie Munin
Publication Date:
02-2010
Content Type:
Journal Article
Abstract:
Since its establishment in 1957, the European Union or, to be more precise, the European Economic Community was motivated by the vision of a single market, where the peoples of Europe would be able to conduct economic transactions without suffering from barriers to trade. EU law, EU legislation, and its interpretation by the European Court of Justice (ECJ) are aimed at promoting the single market vision, based on the four freedoms, one of which is the free movement of persons. These legally-established freedoms aim at removing obstacles to trade. Obstacles to the free movement of persons may include direct or indirect discrimination of employees at work. Discrimination may be based on grounds of religion, race, or sex. This book concentrates on the last.
Topic:
Economics
Political Geography:
Europe

3458. Samantha Currie. Migration, Work and Citizenship in the Enlarged European Union

Author:
Dimitry Kochenov
Publication Date:
02-2010
Content Type:
Journal Article
Abstract:
Michael Gazzaniga's brilliant study of neuropsychology of split-brain patients was based on the analysis of the condition of a tiny sample of subjects. Some aphasia studies produce convincing results working with two or three subjects: more are simply difficult to find. It is generally accepted, however, that in order to reach sound conclusions a representative sample of subjects is usually needed. Samantha Currie's book, claiming to be 'of a socio-legal nature' (at 4) uses a sample of 44 Poles working in the UK (at 211) to back 'socio-legal research' on the condition of half a billion European citizens, should one judge the book by what is on the cover. Constant references to the 'empirical data generated for the research which forms the basis of this book' (at 38), i.e. references to the 44 interviews conducted, sound like misplaced irony when used to agree with the findings based on infinitely more substantial samples, like UK Government statistics including 715,000 registrations (at 69).
Political Geography:
United Kingdom and Europe

3459. Francis G. Jacobs. The Sovereignty of Law. The European Way Erik O. Wennerström. The Rule of Law and the European Union

Author:
Stefan Martini
Publication Date:
02-2010
Content Type:
Journal Article
Abstract:
Arranging the newly arrived items, the book-seller is confronted with the conundrum of where to place the books under review here. At first glance, both dwell on similar subjects: rule of law here, rule of law there. Indeed, they deal with related questions: how can the rule of law be conceptualized and how is it put into meaningful practice within the conglomerate of European institutions? Furthermore, what is the specific role of this 'elusive' (Wennerström, at 41) concept? Both contribute to the emerging field of research on the rule of law. They enrich the debate on cross-fertilization of legal regimes as well as on how to balance commonality and difference in European cooperation. Moreover, both books promise the reader an insider's insight, Francis G. Jacobs being a former Advocate General at the ECJ, and Erik O. Wennerström having worked at the European Commission.
Political Geography:
Europe

3460. Will the EU get a real president? The EU's political system as another example of semi-presidentialism in Europe

Author:
Teija Tiilikainen
Publication Date:
10-2010
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Finnish Institute of International Affairs
Abstract:
At first glance the EU's political system doesn't seem to correspond to any contemporary type of regime. There is a directly elected European Parliament (EP), but the way of constructing relations of power and accountability between the parliament and the three bodies with executive powers, the Commission, the European Council or the Council, complicates the picture. The Commission's accountability to the European Parliament has been confirmed in the founding treaties ever since their conclusion. But what is the value of such a rule when there seems to be a much more powerful executive emerging beyond the reach of any EU-level accountability, namely the European Council?
Topic:
Development and Government
Political Geography:
Europe