EU Law Glossary

EU Law Glossary

• Advocate-General: Legal advisor in the CJEU, provides non-binding opinions.
• Annulment Procedure (Article 263 TFEU): Allows EU acts to be challenged for legality, including lack of competence or procedural infringement.
• Article 2 TEU: Outlines EU values: human dignity, democracy, rule of law.
• Article 7 TEU: Mechanism for addressing member states breaching EU values, with potential sanctions.
• Article 9 TEU: Establishes EU citizen equality alongside national citizenship.
• Article 13 TEU: Defines EU institutions and their functions.
• Article 17 TEU: Grants the European Commission the role of ensuring EU law enforcement.
• Article 20 TFEU: Establishes EU citizenship alongside national citizenship, including rights like free movement.
• Article 23 TFEU: Grants consular protection to EU citizens in third countries.
• Article 50 TEU: Outlines the procedure for member states to withdraw from the EU.
• Article 258 TFEU: Outlines procedure for handling cases where member states don't comply with EU law.
• Article 260 TFEU: Allows for financial penalties if a member state fails to comply with CJEU rulings.
• Article 267 TFEU: Governs the preliminary reference procedure, enabling national courts to seek guidance from the CJEU.
• Area of Freedom, Security, and Justice (AFSJ): Facilitates cooperation between EU member states on justice and security policies. Key features include judicial cooperation in civil/criminal matters, police cooperation (e.g., Europol), common policies on asylum/immigration/external borders, and fundamental rights protections.
• Blocking Minority: A measure in the Council of the EU is blocked if at least 4 member states representing 35% of the EU population vote against it.

Other Concepts

• Directive: EU legislative act that sets out binding results but allows flexibility in national implementation methods.

• Charter of Fundamental Rights: A binding EU document protecting rights like dignity, freedoms, equality, and justice.

• Chen v. Secretary of State for the Home Department (C-200/02): A case in which EU citizenship granted a child and caregiver the right to reside in another EU state.

• Collective Self-Defense (Article 42.7 TEU): Requires assistance between member states in case of armed aggression situations.

• Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP): Unites EU diplomacy and security policy under one framework.

• Counter-limit Principle: A doctrine used by constitutional courts to ensure EU law does not infringe core national constitutional principles.

• Citizenship of the EU: Rights granted to national citizens of member states, including free movement and participation in political processes.

• Countries in the EU by Accession Year: A listing of countries and their accession dates.

• Dublin Regulation: Outlines which member state is responsible for examining asylum applications.

• European Ombudsman: Investigates complaints of maladministration in EU institutions.

• European Parliament Parties: Political groups in the EP. Examples include EPP, Socialists & Democrats, Renew Europe.

• ECHR (European Convention on Human Rights): Foundational treaty for the Council of Europe protecting civil and political rights.

• European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR): Adjudicates violations of the ECHR by member states.

• European External Action Service (EEAS): EU's diplomatic body managing foreign relations.

• European Peace Facility: Strengthens EU capacity to prevent conflicts and provide military aid to partner nations.

• Europol: EU agency that coordinates member state efforts to combat serious crime and terrorism.

• European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC): First European community (1951) to regulate coal and steel industries.

• European Community (EC): Predecessor to the EU, formed in 1957 focused on economic integration.

• Four Freedoms: Core principles ensuring the free movement of goods, services, capital, and people within the EU.

• Infringement Procedure: Legal action initiated by the European Commission against member states who fail to comply with EU law.

• High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy (HR/VP): Manages EU external relations and oversees the CFSP.

• Legislative Procedures: Processes for enacting EU laws, including Ordinary Legislative Procedure and Special Legislative Procedures.

Additional EU Law Concepts

• Ordinary Legislative Procedure: Co-decision process involving the European Parliament and the Council.

• Special Legislative Procedures: Requires approval by either the Parliament or Council (but not both) with limited amendments.

• Landmark Cases CJEU: Important CJEU rulings (examples include Azienda Agricola Monte Arcosu, Costa v. ENEL, Coman v. Romania, and several others, as well as cases like Cassis de Dijon, Van Gend en Loos, and Defrenne).

• Schengen Agreement: Agreement that abolished border controls between participating countries (e.g., visa policies and asylum rules).

• Non-Schengen EU Members: A list of EU members that are not part of the Schengen Area, and other non-EU nations.

• Opt-outs in EU Law: Member state exemptions from specific EU policies or agreements (examples include Denmark, Ireland, Poland, and Hungary in regards to particular EU policies/agreements).

• PESCO (Permanent Structured Cooperation): EU defense collaboration framework among willing member states.

• Preliminary Reference Procedure: Allows national courts to ask the CJEU to interpret or adjudicate EU law.

• Principle of Conferral: EU acts only within limits set by member states' mandates.

• Principle of Proportionality: EU measures are limited to what is necessary to achieve objectives.

• Principle of Subsidiarity: EU intervention only when objectives can't be achieved by member states.

• Primacy of EU Law: EU law prevails over conflicting national laws.

• Qualified Majority Voting (QMV): Decision-making method of member states in the Council. Requires a threshold of member states and populations to support a measure.

• Trilogues: Informal EU negotiations among the European Commission, Parliament, and Council to finalize legislation.

• Treaty on European Union (TEU): Framework for EU principles and objectives.

• Treaties: The Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union and the Treaty of Paris, and Rome with their various provisions, define EU competencies, powers, and operational frameworks.

• Subsidiary Mechanisms: mechanisms in place for EU proposal review, including the yellow and orange card systems.

Test your knowledge of key EU law terms and articles with this glossary quiz. Learn about important concepts such as Advocate-General, annulment procedures, and EU citizenship rights as you explore the foundational texts and their implications. This quiz is perfect for students and professionals interested in EU law.