o x f o r d l a w - graduate taught courses: european union as an actor in international law

oxford law

text: larger smaller

European Union as an Actor in International Law
The process of European integration has entailed a transfer of foreign relations powers from the Member States to the European Union (EU) that does not follow the lines of any other legal development. It is different from the experience of federal States, in so far as the devolution of foreign relations powers is only partial, and it has certainly not entailed the disappearance of the Member States as international legal persons. On the other hand, the quantity and the quality of the functions exercised by the EU on the international plane, and its capacity to develop its own course of foreign relations, makes it an entity with few, if any, traces of resemblance with other existing international organisations.

The course deals with questions at the intersection of European law, public international law, and international relations. It looks both to the inside, giving an overview of the foreign relations law of the EU, and to the outside, examining the legal framework in which the EU acts on the international plane. Looking at some of the core areas of international law, the course examines the problems of and prospects for a supra-national actor in a legal system which is still largely dominated by States. The ultimate question to be explored: Is international law adapting to a new actor or must the EU assume statehood to be a full actor in international law?

The course covers the following topics: the foreign relations law of the EU, the relationship between international law and European law, treaty relations of the EU and its member States (mixed agreements), the EU as a creator of customary international law, the EU as a member of international organizations and a party before international tribunals, international relations and diplomatic powers of the EU, promotion and enforcement of international law by the EU (sanctions, human rights, standards of democratic governance), the transatlantic divide between the EU and the US on matters of international law, violations of international law by the EU and its member States and their international responsibility.

The course is directed at graduates with an interest both in international law and European law. Basic knowledge of these subjects is an advantage. Students without such knowledge will be directed to basic reading in these fields.


			text: larger smaller

	European Union as an Actor in International Law The process of European integration has entailed a transfer of foreign relations powers from the Member States to the European Union (EU) that does not follow the lines of any other legal development. It is different from the experience of federal States, in so far as the devolution of foreign relations powers is only partial, and it has certainly not entailed the disappearance of the Member States as international legal persons. On the other hand, the quantity and the quality of the functions exercised by the EU on the international plane, and its capacity to develop its own course of foreign relations, makes it an entity with few, if any, traces of resemblance with other existing international organisations. The course deals with questions at the intersection of European law, public international law, and international relations. It looks both to the inside, giving an overview of the foreign relations law of the EU, and to the outside, examining the legal framework in which the EU acts on the international plane. Looking at some of the core areas of international law, the course examines the problems of and prospects for a supra-national actor in a legal system which is still largely dominated by States. The ultimate question to be explored: Is international law adapting to a new actor or must the EU assume statehood to be a full actor in international law? The course covers the following topics: the foreign relations law of the EU, the relationship between international law and European law, treaty relations of the EU and its member States (mixed agreements), the EU as a creator of customary international law, the EU as a member of international organizations and a party before international tribunals, international relations and diplomatic powers of the EU, promotion and enforcement of international law by the EU (sanctions, human rights, standards of democratic governance), the transatlantic divide between the EU and the US on matters of international law, violations of international law by the EU and its member States and their international responsibility. The course is directed at graduates with an interest both in international law and European law. Basic knowledge of these subjects is an advantage. Students without such knowledge will be directed to basic reading in these fields.