Judicial Activism At The European Court Of Justice

‘This well-constructed, and well-written, collection fills a gap in the scholarship. It offers a rounded and plausible picture of the Court’s role in Europe, engaging with the complexity of the law without losing sight of the bigger political picture. Well-contextualised, critical, but nuanced, discussions of the role of rights, economics, science, and institutions, and of the important particularities of EU adjudication, will make this volume unmissable for those interested in the political role of the Court of Justice of the EU.’ – Gareth Davies, VU University of Amsterdam, The Netherlands This book delves into the rationale, components of, and responses to accusations of judicial activism at the European Court of Justice. Detailed chapters from academics, practitioners and stakeholders bring diverse perspectives on a range of factors – from access rules to institutional design and to substantive functions – influencing the European Court’s political role. Each of the contributing authors invites the reader to approach the debate on the role of the Court in terms of a constantly evolving set of interactions between the EU judiciary, the European and national political spheres, as well as a multitude of other actors vested in competing legitimacy claims. The book questions the political role of the Court as much as it stresses the opportunities – and corresponding responsibilities – that the Court’s case law offers to independent observers, political institutions and civil society organisations. Judicial Activism at the European Court of Justice will appeal to researchers and graduate students as well as to EU and national officials.

1. Introduction: The European Court of Justice as a Political Actor Elise Muir, Mark Dawson and Bruno de Witte 2. The Political Face of Judicial Activism: Europe’s Law-politics Imbalance Mark Dawson 3. The Least Dangerous Branch of European Governance? The European Court of Justice Under the Checks and Balances Doctrine Marcus Höreth 4. Maybe Not Activist Enough? On the Court’s Alleged Neoliberal Bias in its Recent Labor Cases Clemens Kaupa 5. The Court of Justice: A Fundamental Rights Institution Among Others Elise Muir 6. Actively Talking to Each Other: The Court and the Political Institutions Vassilis Hatzopoulos 7. The European Court of Justice in the Face of Scientific Uncertainty and Complexity Ellen Vos 8. The European Court of Justice and the Duty to Respect Sensitive National Interests Loïc Azoulai 9. A Cautionary Tale: Some Insights Regarding Judicial Activism from the National Experience Maartje de Visser 10. Judicial Activism and the European Court of Justice: How Should Academics Respond? Anthony Arnull 11. The Role and Potential of Civil Society and Human Rights Organizations through Third Party Interventions Before the European Courts: The Case of the EU’s Area of Freedom, Security and Justice Sergio Carrera and Bilyana Petkova 12. Strategies Developed by – and Between – National Governments to Interact with the ECJ Mielle Bulterman and Corinna Wissels Index