Constructing Europe's Area of Freedom, Security and Justice Through the Framework of 'Regulation': A Cascade of Market-Based Challenges in the EU's Fight Against Financial Crime

Abstract

This paper situates the notion of regulation in the context of the EU area of freedom, security and justice (AFSJ) and thereby explores the EU’s current fight against financial crimes from a legal perspective while using insight from political science literature. The paper offers a critique of the current state of play in the EU’s fight against financial crimes by firstly taking a step back and emphasizing the hybrid dimension of this field as it involves different layers of EU policy areas: the internal market, AFSJ law as well as the external effect of EU action and why it needs to be clarified. Secondly, the paper looks at three areas: the proposal for the Fourth Money Laundering Directive, EU Cybercrime and the European impact of global sanctions against piracy. The paper sets out to analyzing these fields in the broader framework of the EU political science notion of 'regulatory' and what it adds to the legal understanding of the AFSJ. Finally, the paper tentatively discusses the function of EU Agencies in the AFSJ and their place in the EU regulatory machinery.