BOBEK Michael - EU Law in National Courts: Revisiting the Foundations (25h)
The seminar critically examines central assumptions concerning the operation of EU law before national courts and authorities. The discussion of each of the themes shall be multilayered, involving not just (i) the Brussels or rather Luxembourg side of the story as to what national courts ought to be doing, but equally (ii) a critical (normative) assessment of the feasibility, operability of that central guidance, accompanied by (iii) comparative examination of what the national courts are in fact doing, i.e. what may be the reality in the Member States in relation to the given principle discussed.
Being aware of such differences is not just an intellectually rewarding analytical exercise in its own right, offering a taster of what “united in (legal) diversity” genuinely means. Solid knowledge of the principles of national application of EU law offers the necessary toolkit for any future practicing EU lawyer, be it before national courts, but equally at the EU level itself. In the latter dimension, understanding of and reasonable assumptions about national realities and judicial function are crucial for designing future common rules, which then can be in fact be followed at the national level.