LAW41040 Law and Governance of the EU

Academic Year 2021/2022

This module asks the question: what is the role of law in the governance of the EU? This involves identifying and analysing the nature of the rule of law, the constitutionalisation of the EU and the nature of governance in general and in the EU in particular. Having briefly reviewed EU legal structures, the module turns to specific examples of governance structures in the EU especially networks and soft law noting their relationship with hard law and the extent to which they challenge or meet rule of law requirements such as accountability.

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Curricular information is subject to change

Learning Outcomes:

By the end of the course students should be able to:
Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the rule of law and of governance
Explain the relationship between law and governance;
Apply that conceptual understanding of governance and law to specific examples in the EU;
Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the Treaty provisions, legislation and case law discussed;
Distinguish and explain the different responses of law and governance to the particular fields explored in the module.

Indicative Module Content:

Indicative content:
The nature of the EU legal order; the constitutionalisation of the EU; changing the EU treaties; the Rule of Law in the EU; Brexit and the EU. Governance; Soft Law; Networks; Accountability

Student Effort Hours: 
Student Effort Type Hours
Seminar (or Webinar)

24

Autonomous Student Learning

180

Total

204

Approaches to Teaching and Learning:
This is a discursive graduate module for students from a broad range of Schools. Law students learn to engage with literatures and approaches in political science and non-law students learn how to engage with law and its significance. Students come to class having completed their reading. There si a lot of group work, peer support and review with a brief lecture introducing new material. Examples of exercises used include research and reviews of blogs, preparation and critique of posters, role plays, group work and presentation, preparation of powerpoint slides. 
Requirements, Exclusions and Recommendations

Not applicable to this module.


Module Requisites and Incompatibles
Not applicable to this module.
 
Assessment Strategy  
Description Timing Open Book Exam Component Scale Must Pass Component % of Final Grade
Examination: Take home exam in week 12 Coursework (End of Trimester) Yes Graded No

50

Examination: take home exam Week 6 Yes Graded No

50


Carry forward of passed components
Yes
 
Resit In Terminal Exam
Spring No
Please see Student Jargon Buster for more information about remediation types and timing. 
Feedback Strategy/Strategies

• Feedback individually to students, post-assessment
• Group/class feedback, post-assessment

How will my Feedback be Delivered?

Both assessments the same: one take home exam question to be completed. Feedback on first via individual feedback on a paper form. Group feedback on second, end of semester.

Main textbooks
These are for background reading and no single text is mandatory. Different styles suit different students but in general bear in mind the date of the book given how law changes.
• C. Barnard and S Peers (eds) European Union Law CUP 2017 D Chalmers, G Davies and G Monti, European Union Law 4th ed CUP, 2019
• P Craig & G de Búrca, EU Law: Texts, Case and Materials 7th ed OUP 2020
• A Kaczorowska-Ireland, European Union Law 4th Routledge 2016
• R Schütze, European Union Law CUP 2015
• I Solanke, EU Law Pearson 2015
• J Steiner and L Woods, EU Law 14th ed 2020
Law and Legislation
• N Foster EU Legislation (for a copy of the consolidated treaty) – a new ed comes out every year but you can always find legislation and the Treaties online.
Other General Reference Books
• KJ Alter, The European Court’s Political Power OUP Oxford 2009
• A Arnull, The European Union and its Court of Justice 2nd ed OUP 2006
• C Barnard (ed), The Fundamental of EU Law Revisited: Assessing the Impact of the Constitutional Debate OUP 2007
• C Barnard and O Odudu (eds) The Outer Limits of European Union Law Hart 2009
• C. Barnard & S. Peers, European Union Law (2nd Edition, Oxford University Press: Oxford UK, 2017)
• CJ. Bickteron, European Integration: From Nation States to Member States OUP Oxford 2012
• CJ Bickerton, D Hodson and U Puetter (eds) The New Intergovernmentalism: European Integration in the Post‐Maastricht Era (2015) 53(4) Journal of Common Market Studies (special issue)
• D. Chalmers, G. Davies & G. Monti, European Union Law (Cambridge University Press; Cambridge – new edition due.
• D. Chalmers, M. Jackenfüchs, C Joerges (eds), The End of the Eurocrats Dream: Adjusting to European Diversity CUP 2016
• PP Craig and G de Búrca (eds), The Evolution of EU Law, 2nd Edition, Oxford University Press: Oxford UK, 2011.
• P.P. Craig, The Lisbon Treaty: Law, Politics and Treaty Reform OUP Oxford 2013
• D. Curtin, Executive Power of the European Union: Law, Practices and the Living Constitution OUP Oxford 2009
• D. Curtin, Executive Power of the European Union: Law, Practices, and the Living Constitution (2009, Oxford University Press: Oxford)
• K. Davies, Understanding European Union Law, (6th Edition, Routledge: UK, 2016).
• G de Búrca, D Kochenov and A Williams (eds), Europe's Justice Deficit? Hart, Oxford 2015
• G De Búrca and J Scott (eds.), Narrowing the Gap? Law and New Approaches to Governance in the European Union (2007) 13(3) Columbia Journal of European Law (special issue)
• F. de Witte, Justice in the EU: The Emergence of Transnational Solidarity OUP, Oxford 2015
• J. Dickson & P. Eleftheriadis, Philosophical Foundations of European Union Law (Oxford University Press; Oxford UK, 2012)
• D Hodson and J Peterson (eds), The Institutions of the European Union 4th OUP Oxford 2017
• T.C. Hartley, The Foundations of European Union Law (8th Ed OUP, Oxford 2014)
• Adrienne Héritier, Explaining Institutional Change in Europe OUP, Oxford, 2007
• E Jones, A Menon and S Weatherill., eds., The Oxford Handbook of the European Union, Oxford University Press: Oxford UK, 2014.
• N McCormick, Questioning Sovereignty OUP 1999
• J. Neyer, The Justification of Europe: A Political Theory of Supranational Integration OUP 2012
• Rosas & Armati, EU Constitutional Law: An Introduction (Hart Publishing 2018),
• R. Schultze, European Constitutional Law 2nd ed 2015 CUP Cambridge
• A-M Slaughter, A Stone Sweet and JHH Weiler, The European Court and National Courts Hart 1997
• Iyiola Solanke, EU Law Pearson 2015
• A Stone Sweet, The Judicial Construction of Europe OUP 2004
• A von Bogdandy and J Bast (eds), The Principles of European Constitutional Law 2nd ed Hart 2008
• JHH Weiler & Wind (eds) European Constitutionalism Beyond the State 2004, CUP
• JHH Weiler, The Constitution of Europe CUP Cambridge 1999
• A Williams, The Ethos of Europe: Values, Law and Justice in the European Union CUP 2010
• M Zürn and C Joerges (eds), Law and Governance in Post-National Europe CUP 2011.
Online Journals and Working Papers (i.e. not in the UCD library databases)
European Research Papers Archive http://eiop.or.at/erpa/
LSE Research Institute http://www.lse.ac.uk/european-institute/research/leqs-discussion-paper-series/papers
Mannheim http://www.mzes.uni-mannheim.de/d7/en/publications/search?f%5B0%5D=field_biblio_mzes_pub_type%3A1&f%5B1%5D=biblio_year%3A%5B2013%20TO%202019%5D
Jean Monnet Papers https://jeanmonnetprogram.org/papers/
EUI Online Papers http://cadmus.eui.eu/handle/1814/812/browse?type=dateissued
ARENA Working Papers http://www.sv.uio.no/arena/english
Ideas of Europe http://ideasoneurope.eu
European Law blog http://europeanlawblog.eu
EU Law Analysis http://eulawanalysis.blogspot.ie
Other Reference Sources
EU Web-Site: http://europa.eu/ This site is vast but a familiarity with it pays real dividends. NEVER just provide this cite in your work.
For case law (post 1999) see the Court of Justice web site at http://curia.europa.eu/
Pre-1999 try eur-lex
http://eur-lex.europa.eu/collection/eu-law/eu-case-law.html

European Navigator https://www.cvce.eu/ - history and politics very useful for historical material/interview/images on the EU.
Note that when using working papers for research purposes, it is important to search to see if there is a final version if the paper is more than a few months old.
Blogs
Politico: EU politics blog – https://www.politico.eu/
Verfassungsblog: European constitutional law - https://verfassungsblog.de/
EU Law blog – useful especially for recent cases https://europeanlawblog.eu/
EU Law analysis blog: run by Prof Steve Peers - http://eulawanalysis.blogspot.com/
The Press
The Financial Times - the best newspaper coverage of EU business, law and politics
The Economist also has excellent coverage.
Anything written by Tony Connelly, RTE reporter in Brussels. Check RTE player for blogs/videos.
EU Representation in Ireland
Europe House, 12-14 Mount Street Lower, Grand Canal Dock, Dublin 2, D02 W710
www.ec.europa.eu/ireland/ You can sign up for their weekly email.