Connected or Disconnected?The EU and Inter national Law Lecture 6: The EU and Succession. Conclusions

Prof. Pieter Jan KUIJPER

The EU and the succession of the ECSC

Historical examples of succesion. Transition League of Nations – UN

Succession of the OEEC – OECD

Imitated in the transition ECSC – EC 2002 Transfer of funds

Transfer of rights and obligations from int. agreements

Done by two unilateral but matching legal acts

See Decisions of 19 July 2002.

Lecture 6: Succession/Conclusion 2

The succession ECSC-EC in the Courts

Application of the cartel and state aid rules See Cases T-27/03 SP SpA v Commission, T-25/04

Gonzalez y Diez v Commission, T-24/07 ThyssenKrupp

v Commission.

Emphasizing Community law principles over

international law rules on treaty succession.

Unity of the Community legal order encompassing the

ECSC and the EC treaties.

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The succession ECSC-EC in the Courts 2

Application of the cartel and state aid rules. Relation between ECSC and EC treaties is as lex

specialis to lex generalis. The latter automatically fills

the gap left by the disappearance of the former.

Differentiation between substantive and procedural

rules.

The former follow the date of the facts; the latter follow

the date of the decision.

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The succession of the EC by the EU

No elaborate unilateral, but matching acts, as in the ECSC – EC transition.

A simple notification from the new EU to the international organizations in which it is observer, member or full participant.

A similar letter has been handed to the governments of all third States, where Comm had a delegation.

A lot depends on the reactions to come.

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Conclusions Connected or Disconnected?

Answer: connected and disconnected. Disconnected from international law in the sense that the

“own legal order” has become important and considered

worthy of protection. By the Court in the first place.

Connected to international law in the sense that the EU legal

system is still basically monist and rather generous with direct

effect. Except in specific cases.

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Conclusions

Connected and disconnected. Connected in that the EU gets slowly better access to

international society: treaty accessions; admission as

member or “full participant” to international

organizations.

Disconnected in that the EU is still considered a strange

animal, whose access is not yet self-evident or quasi-

automatic.

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Conclusions

The “Federal Dimension” The MS are omnipresent in EU external action.

They bring the need to externalize EU federal problems.

Through “false” mixed agreements

Through declarations of competence

Through disconnection clauses

Losing sovereignty is much more visible externally than

internally.

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Conclusions

The separation of powers/trias politica. EP’s growing powers constitutionally recognized.

The special place of the executive reaffirmed in the

role of the HR and the Commission.

The special caution of the Union Courts not to be in

the way of the executive and the legislature in external

relation confirms that.

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