International Law as Law of the EU: The Role of the ECJ

In: Enzo Cannizzaro, Paolo Palchetti and Ramses A. Wessel (eds), International Law as Law of the European Union, Martinus Nijhoff Publishers, 2011, pp. 353-377

CLEER Working Paper 2010/6

25 Pages Posted: 30 Jun 2012

See all articles by Christina Eckes

Christina Eckes

Amsterdam Centre for European Law and Governance

Date Written: November 2010

Abstract

Lately, the Court of Justice has been harshly criticised for having unduly restricted the effects of international law within the European legal order. Cases such as Van Parys, Kadi, Mox Plant, Intertanko, and Commune de Mesquer have led scholars to argue that the Court of Justice is becoming less international law friendly. This brings interesting questions to the fore: has the case-law changed? And if there is a change, is this change due to a different attitude of the Court of Justice towards international law? What factors could have influenced the recent decisions of the Court of Justice? This working paper addresses these questions. It analyses the Court’s recent decisions concerning international law, contrasts them with earlier rulings and places them in the broader context of the Court’s understanding of the European legal order. The analysis leads to a more nuanced conclusion. The Court’s attitude towards international law cannot easily be placed on a one dimensional scale of ‘international law friendliness’. Finally, four observations are made on what might have influenced the Court’s rulings in recent years.

Suggested Citation

Eckes, Christina, International Law as Law of the EU: The Role of the ECJ (November 2010). In: Enzo Cannizzaro, Paolo Palchetti and Ramses A. Wessel (eds), International Law as Law of the European Union, Martinus Nijhoff Publishers, 2011, pp. 353-377, CLEER Working Paper 2010/6, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2096203

Christina Eckes (Contact Author)

Amsterdam Centre for European Law and Governance ( email )

Oudemanhuispoort 4-6
1012 CN Amsterdam
Netherlands

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