JJUA55117U Advanced EU Constitutional Law

The course will give the students with an interest in the EU an opportunity explore a selection of topics, which are both fundamental (timeless) and timely.
More specifically, the main objectives of the course are

1. To provide the students with a general overview of European constitutional legal framework, including the key concepts, principles and institutions. We will analyse the concepts and principles of supremacy, proportionality, conferred powers, (horizontal) direct effect, institutional balance and the role of EU institutions in the integration and constitutionalization process.

2. The students will be encouraged to question the established narratives of constitutionalization through law and critically examine the arguments of the Court, pertaining to the autonomy and effectiveness of the EU legal order.

3. The course will address current constitutional challenges, such as the impact of the Euro crisis on the democratic processes, the accession of the EU to the European Convention of Human Rights, the challenges facing the EU in the current refugee crisis and Brexit. The course will offer the students a broad understanding of the European constitutional order, and explain the process of integration and constitutionalization through the interaction between the legal structure and political processes, principles and practice, and the relationship between the major European legal actors, such as the Commission, the Court of Justice and national courts.