The contribution of the Court of Justice to the codification of the founding values of the European Union

Abstract

, Madrid ESTUDIOS J. ROLDÁN BARBERO La aplicación territorial del derecho de la Unión Europea y el derecho internacional C. ARANGÜENA FANEGO Emisión y ejecución en España de órdenes europeas de protección D. ORDÓÑEZ SOLÍS ¿Cómo se derivan entre las administraciones españolas las responsabilidades nancieras por el incumplimiento del derecho de la Unión Europea?

The contribution of the Court of Justice to the codification of the founding values of the European Union

“…71 Likewise, the Court of Justice carved out the rule of law as an «umbrella principle», aimed to serve as an interpretative guide and as a source from which more specific legal standards may be derived. 72 Despite the slight reference in the Granaria case, 73 the Court for the first time mentioned the rule of law in its judgment of 1986 on the Les Verts case, emphasising that «the European Economic Community is a community based on the rule of law, inasmuch as neither its member states nor its institutions can avoid a review of the question whether the measures adopted by them are in conformity with the basic constitutional charter, the treaty». 74 On that occasion, Advocate General Federico Mancini linked the rule of law with fundamental rights, as he essentially suggested equating it with the right to an effective remedy and the right of access to an impartial tribunal and more comprehensively to judicial review.…”

“…Indeed, the Hungarian situation could even perpetrate an immediate violation of the fundamental values of the EU, since the adoption of a constitution that compromises the independence of the judiciary could be, as has been noted, a violation of instantaneous character. 101 In the unlikelihood to implement the procedure under Article 7, the European Commission and the Court of Justice played a key role in tackling the situation in Hungary through the traditional infringement procedures according to Article 258 TFEU. In two judgments, in fact, the Court held Hungary responsible of not complying with EU legislation on key matters that are likely to entail also a breach of the EU founding values.…”