University of Cambridge, Faculty of Law

European Union Law (Tripos)

Syllabus
  1. Constitutional issues:
    1. The objectives, structure and legal character of the European Union.
    2. The interplay between the political institutions (European Council, Council of Ministers, Commission and European Parliament) in the EU’s legislative process, and the issues this raises for the democratic legitimacy for the European Union; forms of EU legislation.
    3. The organising principles of the legal order: primacy and direct effect; the attribution of powers, subsidiarity, proportionality; general principles of law.
    4. Protection of fundamental rights, with particular reference to the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights.
  2. Remedies:
    1. Proceedings before the Court of Justice: references for preliminary rulings; actions for annulment; please of illegality (outline only); actions for damages against a Union institution and enforcement actions against Member States (outline only).
    2. Remedies in national courts: the extent of Member States’ procedural autonomy; Factortame (No. I) and its aftermath; Francovich and its aftermath.
  3. The internal market:
    1. Free movement of goods: the customs union and the common market; customs duties and charges having equivalent effect; discriminatory internal taxation; quantitative restrictions and measures having equivalent effect; the effect of the Keck line of case law; justifications for national restrictions on freedom of movement (not including intellectual property rights); the effect of the Unfair Commercial Practices Directive on Keck.
    2. Free movement of persons: free movement of workers; freedom of establishment (not including mutual recognition of qualifications, directives or company law); freedom to provide services; citizenship of the Union.