Introduction-The European Union in 2011: Post-Lisbon Progress and the Eurozone Crisis
1170 FORDHAMINTERNATIONAL LAW JOURNAL [Vol. 35:1167
Fordham International Law Journal
Roger J. Goebel 0
0 Fordham University School of Law
Copyright c 2017 by the authors. Fordham International Law Journal is produced by The Berkeley Electronic Press (bepress). http://ir.lawnet.fordham.edu/ilj
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2017
Article 1
THE EUROPEAN UNION IN 2011:
POST-LISBON PROGRESS AND THE
EUROZONE CRISIS
During 2011 and early 2012, the European Union certainly
made substantial progress toward achieving its goal of "an ever
closer union among the peoples of Europe."' The 2009 Treaty
of Lisbon's improvements in the operational structure of its
institutions-the Commission, Parliament, Council, European
Council, and Court of Justice-became fully effective without
difficulty. The political institutions cooperated efficiently in the
adoption of new important legislation to promote the internal
market, while the Court of Justice issued striking and novel
judgments promoting basic rights and citizenship of the Union.
Looking only at this picture, the European Union's progress is
undeniable.
But there is unfortunately another picture when we turn to
the economic sphere. After the severe recession that hit most of
the European Union in 2008-2009, 2010 provided only a brief
respite. In 2011 and early 2012, many nations in the Eurozone
fell into a severe recession, often with severe risks of banking
failures. One effort after another by the European Central Bank
("ECB"), the European Council, the Commission, and the
International Monetary Fund to bail out Greece, Ireland,
Portugal, and later Spain and Italy, have thus far not met with
success. The ongoing crisis has occasioned many predictions of
the Eurozone's collapse in the media and even among serious
and sober economists. Regrettably, there has been virtually no
mention of the great value provided by the ECB's control of
Eurozone monetary policy for the last decade, nor of the many
benefits the use of the euro as a sole currency has brought to
commercial operators and private citizens since 2002.
This annual EU law symposium of the Fordham lItermational
Law Journalreflects these developments in a variety of excellent
articles by leading academic contributors.
In view of the Treaty of Lisbon's significant grant of the
"same legal value as the Treaties" to the Charter of
Fundamental Rights of the European Union ("Charter"), the
symposium includes two articles concerning basic human rights.
Judge Thomas von Danwitz of the Court of Justice of the
European Union ("Court of Justice" or "Court"), who is also a
leading German academic expert on the European Union, has
authored with Katherina Paraschas "A Fresh Start for the
Charter: Fundamental Questions on the Application of the
European Charter of Fundamental Rights." Their essay provides
a sophisticated analysis of the impact of the Charter on EU and
national law, of the distinction between rights and principles in
the Charter text, of its relation to the European Convention of
Human Rights, and other issues. Professor Elizabeth Defeis, a
frequent writer on basic rights topics, has provided "Human
Rights, the European Union, and the Treaty Route: From
Maastricht to Lisbon." Her essay provides a fascinating historical
survey of basic rights protection by early judgments of the Court
of Justice, the impact of the Maastricht Treaty, the adoption of
the EU Charter in 2000, and the ultimate grant of legal effect to
the Charter by the Treaty of Lisbon.
Intrinsically related to basic rights protection is the
prohibition of discrimination in employment based upon
nationality or gender, pursuant to long-standing Treaty
provisions and legislation, augmented by the prohibition of
discrimination in employment based upon race or ethnic origin,
religious beliefs, age, disability, and sexual orientation pursuant
to legislation adopted in 2002. Philippa Watson, a UK solicitor
expert in employment law, has authored "Equality Between
Europe's Citizens: Where Does the Union Now Stand?," an
authoritative analysis of the relevant Treaty provisions,
legislation, and prominent Court judgments that have already
made significant progress in the achievement of equality in
employment.
Two articles concern the Monetary Union and the
Eurocrisis. A leading UK international financial and monetary
expert, Professor Rosa Lastra, has published "The Evolution of
20121 INTRODUCTIOX: THE EUROPEAN UNIONIN 2011
the European Central Bank." Her essay analyzes the monetary
objectives and operational functions of the ECB since its
creation in 1998, with a valuable review of a crucial weakness:
the absence of any ECB competence to supervise the prudent
management and financial stability of banks and other financial
institutions. Complementing this is "Transparency and Financial
Regulation in the European Union: Crisis and Complexity," by
Professor Caroline Bradley, another financial law expert.
Professor Bradley carefully examines the level of transparency in
EU regulation of banking and securities markets, pointing to
serious operational issues, and links this to the current
Eurozone crisis.
Professor Fernanda Nicola has authored "Invisible Cities in
Europe," a decidedly novel essay examining how a variety of EU
legislative measures and court judgments that are principally
intended to further integration within the internal market also
have produced significant effects upon municipal and local
govermnent, even though in theory, pursuant to the "fiction of
nonintervention," EU courts are not supposed to intervene in
state-local affairs. The essay persuasively contends that some
judgments strengthen national governments at the expense of
municipal and local authorities, while in contrast in other
sectors the case law reshapes and augments the power of cities
versus central and regional governments.
UK professor Erika Szyszczak has provided an innovative
study, "Building a Socioeconomic Constitution: A Fantastic
Object?," which analyzes fundamental socioeconomic values set
forth in the Treaty of Lisbon in the context of a historic
evolution, from the late 1980s to the present, reviewing relevant
policies, programs, legislative initiatives, and Court case law.
Finally, Professor Tracy Kaye, a rare international tax law
expert, has provided "Direct Taxation in the European Union:
From Maastricht to Lisbon." A good argument can be made that
harmonization of the Member State direct tax regimes,
especially corporate income tax rules, would significantly
promote an integrated marketplace. Unfortunately, the Treaty
requirement that the Council act unanimously to achieve this
has always blocked legislative action. Professor Kaye indicates
the influence of Court of Justice case law directed against
discriminatory national direct tax rules and reviews European
Commission efforts to reduce national barriers through "soft
law" policies and cooperative relations between Member States.
Viewed as an ensemble, this series of diverse essays greatly
enriches understanding of the evolution of ELF law, both in its
further progress and in its confrontation with the current
economic crisis.
1. Treaty Establishing the European Economic Community , Mar. 25 , 1957 , pmbl., 298 U.N.T.S. 11 , 14 .