EUROPEAN LAW (module 2)
Chapter 1. A first glance at the European Union
Section I. The distincion between the council of Europe and
the European Union
Extra notes from class:
The Istanbul Convention (2011) was created to fight gender-based and
sexual violence. One of its key principles is the consent-based definition of
rape: “If someone engages in a sexual act without the other person’s
consent, it is considered rape.”
Example: the Gisèle Pelicot case. Although France signed the Convention,
its national definition of rape was stricter/ different from the definition
required by the Istanbul Convention.
In the Gisèle Pelicot case, the lawyers of the ‘offenders’ argued that
because the victim was often unconscious, she could not prove that she
had said “no” or shown a lack of consent. Under the old French law, the
absence of a clear “no” made prosecution more difficult. This shows that
even when states sign an international convention, problems can
still arise if their national laws do not fully match the obligations
of that convention.
Enforcement mechanisms:
The EU can impose penalty payments on member states if they fail
to adjust their national laws after committing to do so.
The Council of Europe and the Istanbul Convention rely on a
monitoring system (GREVIO) to check whether states are actually
implementing the rules.
The EU generally has stronger enforcement tools, while international
law often depends on monitoring and political pressure.
International law can still have a significant influence. In the Pelicot case,
the judge was aware of the standards set by the Istanbul Convention. The
case helped trigger legal reform in France. After this case, France
introduced a new consent law: “If a person does not say “yes”, it counts as
1
,rape.” This change removed the possibility for courts to argue about the
need for an explicit “no”.
EU law is a source of law (not a branch of
law)
EU law is a source of national law
The EU is a source of law. The Istanbul Convention is a source of law and
that impacts the branch of national law.
EU constitutional law
EU substantive law
2 types of EU law
Constitional law (constituioneel recht) = about who makes law and
who gets to make the descisions.
Substantive law (materieel recht) = about what is allowed or
prohibited.
• For exemple: iIf the EU decides to make a law about
climate change, for exemple, we can’t use straws – no
platic straws anymore (als het wegwerp is) – so EU said
this is banned
Constitutioneel recht gaat over wie de macht heeft en hoe
2
,Chapter 2. The creation of the EU
Section I. The golden fifties
- Aftermath World War II: A period of rebuilding and recovery after
World War II. Europe was traumatised and destroyed, but the
economies grew quickly and the living standards rose as countries
focused on “never again” and rebuilding peace.
Europe had suffered massive human-rights violations and physical
destruction. Countries like Belgium, France and Italy regained their
sovereignty and aimed to prevent another war at all costs.
o Iron Curtain = the growing divide between the democratic
West and the communist East, controlled by the Soviet Union
under Stalin. Germany was split into East and West,
symbolising this division.
- Early forms of cooperation: NATO (1949), Council of Europe
(1949): Western countries began to cooperate to keep peace and
defend democracy.
NATO: A defence alliance including the US and Canada.
Article 5 says
that an attack on one member is an attack on all. Truman
supported
this to keep Europe strong against the Soviet Union.
Council of Europe: Promoted human rights and democracy.
- Shuman Declaration (1950): French minister Robert Schuman
proposed pooling French and German coal and steel production. This
was a major step because France chose to trust Germany again after
its aggression in WWII. The idea was to share control over coal and
steel (used for tanks and weapons) and tghat would make war
between them impossible.
- Treaty of Paris (1951): European Coal and Steel Community:
6 countries (FR, IT, BE, NL, LU, DE) created a common authority over
coal and steel – resources needed for weapons – to ensure peace
and cooperation. Germany was allowed in under the condition of
shared control, following the “never again” principle. Truman
supported this cooperation financially (Marshall aid) because a
united Europe could resist the growing power of the Soviet Union.
Three European Communities
European Coal and European Atomic
European Economic
Steel Community Energy Community
Community (EEC)
(ECSC) (EURATOM)
1957 In the 50’s we had
1951 1957
3 communities.
3Six countries Six countries Six countries
For 50 years For unlimited For unlimited ECSC, EEC,
Common market period period EURATOM
in coal and steel Common market Speedy
Free movement of establishment All this came from
, services and
capital
Common policies
Section II. The Swinging Sixties
- Economic growth
In the 1960s – often called the swinging sixties – Europe experienced
strong economic growth. Populations increased, industries
expanded, and people had more money to spend. This growth
created the need for smoother trade between countries.
o One big supermarket: the Customs Union (1968)
1) Free trade area inside the Community: When a
product crossed the border from one member state to
another, no customs duties were charged anymore.
Example: Dutch butter was cheap and high quality.
Dutch farmers worked efficiently, so they could
easily sell butter in Belgium. Belgium did not like
this competition and tried to protect its farmers by
charging customs taxes. With the Customs Union,
this became impossible: no more internal customs
duties.
2) Common External Tariff: Products coming from
outside the Community (e.g., potatoes from the US)
were taxed only once at the European border. The
money collected went into a shared budget that was
divided among all member states.
- Merger Treaty (1965): The European Coal and Steel Community
(ECSC), the European Economic Community (EEC), and Euratom all
had separate institutions. The Merger Treaty combined them
into one set of shared institutions, simplifying the system and
making cooperation more efficient.
- Luxembourg Compromise (1966): In the 1960s, decision-making
in the Council (then called the Council of Ministers) still
required unanimity – every minister had to vote “yes”. When France
boycotted meetings in 1965 (the “empty chair crisis”), a
compromise was needed. The Luxembourg Compromise allowed the
continuation of voting, but if a MS believed a decision threatened
vital national interests, the others would try to reach a unanimous
4
Chapter 1. A first glance at the European Union
Section I. The distincion between the council of Europe and
the European Union
Extra notes from class:
The Istanbul Convention (2011) was created to fight gender-based and
sexual violence. One of its key principles is the consent-based definition of
rape: “If someone engages in a sexual act without the other person’s
consent, it is considered rape.”
Example: the Gisèle Pelicot case. Although France signed the Convention,
its national definition of rape was stricter/ different from the definition
required by the Istanbul Convention.
In the Gisèle Pelicot case, the lawyers of the ‘offenders’ argued that
because the victim was often unconscious, she could not prove that she
had said “no” or shown a lack of consent. Under the old French law, the
absence of a clear “no” made prosecution more difficult. This shows that
even when states sign an international convention, problems can
still arise if their national laws do not fully match the obligations
of that convention.
Enforcement mechanisms:
The EU can impose penalty payments on member states if they fail
to adjust their national laws after committing to do so.
The Council of Europe and the Istanbul Convention rely on a
monitoring system (GREVIO) to check whether states are actually
implementing the rules.
The EU generally has stronger enforcement tools, while international
law often depends on monitoring and political pressure.
International law can still have a significant influence. In the Pelicot case,
the judge was aware of the standards set by the Istanbul Convention. The
case helped trigger legal reform in France. After this case, France
introduced a new consent law: “If a person does not say “yes”, it counts as
1
,rape.” This change removed the possibility for courts to argue about the
need for an explicit “no”.
EU law is a source of law (not a branch of
law)
EU law is a source of national law
The EU is a source of law. The Istanbul Convention is a source of law and
that impacts the branch of national law.
EU constitutional law
EU substantive law
2 types of EU law
Constitional law (constituioneel recht) = about who makes law and
who gets to make the descisions.
Substantive law (materieel recht) = about what is allowed or
prohibited.
• For exemple: iIf the EU decides to make a law about
climate change, for exemple, we can’t use straws – no
platic straws anymore (als het wegwerp is) – so EU said
this is banned
Constitutioneel recht gaat over wie de macht heeft en hoe
2
,Chapter 2. The creation of the EU
Section I. The golden fifties
- Aftermath World War II: A period of rebuilding and recovery after
World War II. Europe was traumatised and destroyed, but the
economies grew quickly and the living standards rose as countries
focused on “never again” and rebuilding peace.
Europe had suffered massive human-rights violations and physical
destruction. Countries like Belgium, France and Italy regained their
sovereignty and aimed to prevent another war at all costs.
o Iron Curtain = the growing divide between the democratic
West and the communist East, controlled by the Soviet Union
under Stalin. Germany was split into East and West,
symbolising this division.
- Early forms of cooperation: NATO (1949), Council of Europe
(1949): Western countries began to cooperate to keep peace and
defend democracy.
NATO: A defence alliance including the US and Canada.
Article 5 says
that an attack on one member is an attack on all. Truman
supported
this to keep Europe strong against the Soviet Union.
Council of Europe: Promoted human rights and democracy.
- Shuman Declaration (1950): French minister Robert Schuman
proposed pooling French and German coal and steel production. This
was a major step because France chose to trust Germany again after
its aggression in WWII. The idea was to share control over coal and
steel (used for tanks and weapons) and tghat would make war
between them impossible.
- Treaty of Paris (1951): European Coal and Steel Community:
6 countries (FR, IT, BE, NL, LU, DE) created a common authority over
coal and steel – resources needed for weapons – to ensure peace
and cooperation. Germany was allowed in under the condition of
shared control, following the “never again” principle. Truman
supported this cooperation financially (Marshall aid) because a
united Europe could resist the growing power of the Soviet Union.
Three European Communities
European Coal and European Atomic
European Economic
Steel Community Energy Community
Community (EEC)
(ECSC) (EURATOM)
1957 In the 50’s we had
1951 1957
3 communities.
3Six countries Six countries Six countries
For 50 years For unlimited For unlimited ECSC, EEC,
Common market period period EURATOM
in coal and steel Common market Speedy
Free movement of establishment All this came from
, services and
capital
Common policies
Section II. The Swinging Sixties
- Economic growth
In the 1960s – often called the swinging sixties – Europe experienced
strong economic growth. Populations increased, industries
expanded, and people had more money to spend. This growth
created the need for smoother trade between countries.
o One big supermarket: the Customs Union (1968)
1) Free trade area inside the Community: When a
product crossed the border from one member state to
another, no customs duties were charged anymore.
Example: Dutch butter was cheap and high quality.
Dutch farmers worked efficiently, so they could
easily sell butter in Belgium. Belgium did not like
this competition and tried to protect its farmers by
charging customs taxes. With the Customs Union,
this became impossible: no more internal customs
duties.
2) Common External Tariff: Products coming from
outside the Community (e.g., potatoes from the US)
were taxed only once at the European border. The
money collected went into a shared budget that was
divided among all member states.
- Merger Treaty (1965): The European Coal and Steel Community
(ECSC), the European Economic Community (EEC), and Euratom all
had separate institutions. The Merger Treaty combined them
into one set of shared institutions, simplifying the system and
making cooperation more efficient.
- Luxembourg Compromise (1966): In the 1960s, decision-making
in the Council (then called the Council of Ministers) still
required unanimity – every minister had to vote “yes”. When France
boycotted meetings in 1965 (the “empty chair crisis”), a
compromise was needed. The Luxembourg Compromise allowed the
continuation of voting, but if a MS believed a decision threatened
vital national interests, the others would try to reach a unanimous
4
