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Keywords: principles of EU law; principle of subsidiarity; principle of loyal cooperation; principle of proportionality
The principles specific to the implementation of EU law have as characteristic that they mark the specificity of EU law in relation to other legal orders, from national or international point of view. These principles include the principle of conferral, with multiple consequences on the entire EU system, but also the principle of subsidiarity, proportionality or of sincere cooperation.
More...Keywords: corrective justice; utilitarian justice; punitive justice; morality of duty; morality of aspiration; European Consumer Law.
The article elaborates on the concept of corrective justice and its reverberations in European Consumer Law, by decoupling corrective justice from its alternatives – punitive justice and utilitarian justice – based on the role played by professionals’ fault in the economy of each type of legal reasoning. The main objective is to deliver a set of characteristics for the applications of corrective justice in Consumer Law and to observe, trough the means of a brief inventory of the legal remedies, the role played by corrective justice in erasing disequilibria existing between professional parties and profane consumers, in response to the presumably intrinsic vulnerability of the latter. The paper is centred on the way corrective justice theories overpass the traditional fault-based approaches to professionals’ liability, thus court’s sentence being meant to ‘correct’ an economic or a psychical harm, instead of punishing deviant behaviour. As opposed to ‘punitive justice’, avoidance of reference to professional’s fault represents one of the major characteristics of ‘corrective justice’, along with the focusing on the eradication of inequitable harm, rather than on the preventive, educational or social impact of the judicial sentence. As opposed to the ‘economic’ or ‘utilitarian’ approaches of European Consumer Law, ‘corrective justice’ valorises the trial result not in terms of economic distribution of resources, but in terms of complete satisfaction of the victim, from the angle of recovered damages.
More...Keywords: fundamental rights; human traffic; penal policy
The European framework in which the judicial system of Romania works, obliges the Romanian society and the authorities to adapt to the new standards, especially in this very important domain. Of a great importance are the aspects concerning the approach of the victim of the human traffic, so that the judicial procedures in which the victim takes part are not traumatizing and not to contribute to a new status in which the person is reconsidered a victim. The minor, as a victim of the human traffic, has a special status, taking into consideration the delicacy with which the case must be dealt with and also all the aspects regarding his exploitation. The phenomenon of the human traffic often raises controversies and confusions, being associated to the traffic of migrants, to procurement, and the victim of the human traffic to the prostitute.
More...Keywords: labour law; approximation; association agreement; European integration
In 2014, Georgia signed the Association Agreement with the EU. The Agreement obliges Georgia to fulfil specified obligations in labour law field. Despite the fact that labour relations in Georgia have been for many years the subject of theoretical and practical research, European standards are still hot and permanent topics of social and economic life. Now, there is in particular a lack of understanding of the sense of the AA provisions. It should be stressed that the topic of labour law is not only on current agenda through the course of European integration. The necessity for gradual integration and implementation of European labour standards has been permanently discussed since the Partnership and Cooperation Agreement (PCA) between the EU and Georgia, which entered into force in 1999. The paper reviews the following issues: Obligations Defined by the Association Agreement: theoretical approach of explanation and interpretation of AA provisions on labour aspects in the light of the DCFTA and the Social Policy. Attitudes on the Association Agenda and Annual Action Plans are discussed as well. Dynamics of approximation of Labour Law on the Background of Normative Environment Supporting Euro-Integration Processes attempt to summarize and systematize all stages of legal approximation process in the labour field in the light of European integration, covering the early periods of PCA implementation, the National Harmonization Strategy and the Action Plan for 2004-2006, the ENP AP, and the annual progress reports of the European Commission.
More...Keywords: Rehabilitation; resocialisation; life imprisonment; human rights; penal policy;
Rehabilitation in the sense of compulsory treatment of prisoners, enforced against their will if necessary, is controversial. In Europe, however, a positive version of rehabilitation, in terms of which prisoners are given the opportunity to improve themselves, has emerged as a human right that prisoners may claim. This paper explains how the positive version of rehabilitation has become dominant in Europe. It analyses the case law of the European Court of Human Rights that has developed the substance of prisoners’ right to rehabilitation and explains what prison authorities need to do in order to enable life-sentenced prisoners in particular to exercise their right to rehabilitation.
More...Keywords: wine; Court of Justice of European Union; intellectual property; international agreement; taxation;
It must be observed that a quality wine is a very specific product. Its particular qualities and characteristics, which result from a combination of natural and human factors, are linked to its geographical area of origin and vigilance must be exercised and efforts made in order for them to be maintained. (Court of Justice of European Union, Rioja Wine Judgement)1 The present paper will consider some of the most relevant judgements of the Court of Justice of European Union regarding wine. Coincidentally or not many of these cases are also landmark decisions of the European Union law. The purpose of this paper is to present the variety of European Union law areas enriched through the Court wine judgments: intellectual property, free movement of goods, fiscal barrier to trade, EU legal order, fundamental rights, public health and external relations. Surveying the wine jurisprudence of the Court of Justice of European Union resembles a wine testing. One can sense the savours rich bouquet that the case law expresses, on strong cultural choices, policies, lifestyle or identity at national and European level.
More...Keywords: technical surveillance; comparative law; interception; human rights;
The use of technical supervision as a probation process in the criminal trial is a topical issue, given that in recent years information and communication technologies have considerably increased the ability to collect, process and disseminate information. Technological progress results in the secrecy of correspondence being increasingly difficult to keep, and the technical means of supervision will always be one step ahead of legislation. Given the evolution of investigative methods in the criminal process, privacy protection has become a natural concern of the EU member states legislative authorities. Interference with private life is a controversial subject questioning the renunciation at privacy, as the general interest of the society, represented by the repression of crimes with a high degree of social danger, prevails over the private one.
More...Keywords: non-discrimination; same sex couples; recognition of family status; international protection; Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union;
The article aims to illustrate the legal trend on the same sex couple’s rights in the European area. Starting with an analysis of the increasing urge of a legal recognition of same sex relations this article will first highlight the rising interest within the European boundaries to guarantee some form of legal protection at the international level in the ECHR system and in the EU legal system as well; secondly it will briefly present the leading cases ruled by the Court of ECHR, the ones ruled by the CJEU, and finally the ones ruled by Italian courts. Hence it will focus on the Italian legal system, and the Cirinnà Bill adopted in 2016. In the conclusion, the article draws some critical concluding remarks regarding the actual outcomes.
More...Keywords: European Union; trafficking in human beings; victim protection;
Trafficking in human beings is a flagrant violation and one of the most serious crimes against human rights, unanimously recognized by the international community. Being consistently assimilated to a form of modern slavery, trafficking in human beings in Europe is expected to reach the depth of other illicit activities, such as arm trafficking and drug trafficking, over the next ten years. Even if it is not a new phenomenon, in recent years, increasing mobility throughout Europe and the development of new technologies have contributed to the increase in trafficking in human beings. Sexual exploitation, forced labour or begging, forced marriages and the sale of children are the main purposes of trafficking in human beings. In the European Union, these forms of exploitation take place largely within its borders: especially in Eastern and Central Europe - such as Romania and Bulgaria. However, Western Europe is also a destination for victims in Africa, Asia and South America. Despite more than three decades of commitment to maximizing cooperation in the fight against human trafficking, the Union's concrete action to prevent and combat crime, and in particular to protect and assist the victims of this scourge, remains extremely daunting.
More...Keywords: Ukraine; judicial system; key reforms; EU and international obligations;
Ukraine’s judicial system is still shackled by its Soviet past. Despite gaining independence in 1991, it is not surprising that this new sovereign state could not usher in overnight a new judicial system firmly based on the rule of law and the separation of powers. The author assesses current reform efforts in the Ukrainian justice sector in light of several European Union and Council of Europe recommendations for further steps in the constitutional development of Ukraine. Key reforms are analysed including the implications of the “small justice reform” of 2002 and the draft law on the judiciary and the status of judges. As Ukraine does not have an explicit strategy on Justice and Home Affairs, which makes any such analysis of recent justice reforms more difficult, its obligations in this area under several EU-Ukraine treaties and joint projects will be analysed.
More...Keywords: consummer; consent vices; rules; balance; contract; unfair terms;
The balance of the consumer contract concerns more the notion of cause of the obligation, since the contractual balance supposes an analysis of the counterparties. Jurisprudence and doctrine have sometimes used this concept to remedy imbalances, in particular by carrying out a more global analysis of the content of the contract. Common law has its own rules for rebalancing the contract, and in particular the theory of vices of consent. The interest of this article is to show if the rules of common law can be used to balance the consumer contract and to what extent they are to fight against contractual unfair terms in consumer contracts.
More...Keywords: discretionary power; human judgment; legal practice; tax law; offshore activity; harmonization;
Difficulty or possibility; freedom or compulsion? How can we determine the operation of the discretionary power - is it an intellectual process in the legal system or just arbitrariness? The aim of this essay is to survey all dimensions of the discretionary power to get its real intended purpose because there are some variances between its theory and the legal practice. We mean, we have to see how it gets its right form and function. The second part of this essay focuses on the dimensions of tax law. The legal practice reflects that the tax law is in one unit with the discretion and the tax law can be that branch which can reach all citizens around us. In the following we are trying to underline the way we can define the atmosphere of our legal practice
More...Keywords: assistance; insurance; solidarity; security; social; policy;
Solidarity itself is a guiding principle for social policy. This documentconsists of reviewing the legal framework of a theory of solidarity. The theory ofsolidarity is the theoretical basis of the principle of social solidarity, which appliesnational law, European law and international law. The results of investigation ofthe concept of solidarity will be compared to the legal concepts at two levels:national law and European law. An explanation and analysis of the meaning ofthe concept of solidarity is essential in the current European debate and theglobal economic crisis. It is suggested that attempts to promote growth andeconomic prosperity of every member of society can only be for the universalgood.
More...Keywords: judiciary; law making; Europe; Constitutional Courts;
Review of: Judicial Law-Making in European Constitutional Courts, ed. M. Florczak- -Wątor, London – New York 2020, pp. 369
More...Keywords: motherhood; prenatal rights; prenatal medicine; difference feminism; ethics of care; human rights; macierzyństwo; prawa prenatalne; medycyna prenatalna; feminizm różnicy; etyka troski
The article focuses upon the phenomenon of motherhood within international and European legal contexts. The initial remarks concern the analysis of motherhood as an activity deeply rooted in interpersonal relations, in accordance with the feminist theory of care. Relevant human rights provisions dealing with motherhood are identified, and the scope of mothers’ legal entitlements and public authorities’ duties is analyzed. Selected case-law of the European courts is presented, in order to identify the obligations of public authorities related to providing support to the relationship between mother and child. The selection of cases is based upon their impact on bioethics, healthcare, and medical services. Therefore, the overall goal is to examine the hypothesis of prospective correspondence or lack of correspondence between the provisions of human rights treaties on motherhood (law in books) and courts’ adjudication (law in action). In the final part of the article concluding remarks and observations are offered.
More...Keywords: climate change; EU principle of a high level of environmental protection; Green Deal; European Climate Law; Arti. 37 EU Charter of Fundamental Rights; stable climate right; environmental EU policies;
The principle of integrating the requirement of a high level of environmental protection and improving its quality into all Union policies, as enshrined in Article 37 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the EU, is also increasingly reflected in the EU action on climate change. It expresses the importance of environmental and climate protection as one of the European Union’s key objectives (Article 3(3) TEU and Article 191 TFEU) and specifies the level pursued. The proclamation of the Green Deal (December 2019), the assumption of the “Fit-for-55” package and in particular the adoption of the European Climate Law (Regulation (EU) No 1119/2021) have brought about important developments in the meaning of the principle and the affirmation of its specific dimension in order to ensure a high level of climate protection. As a principle of EU law, compliance with it is conditional on the validity of the derived law and thus subject to judicial review under the conditions laid down in Article 191 TFEU; it constitutes an element of the interpretation of the derived law, thereby influencing national policies and regulations in this area. Last but not least, the principle is an incentive and influence of the general movement of enshrining and guaranteeing a stable right to climate, which is part of the general human right to a protected environment.
More...Keywords: teleworking; remote work; teleworking arrangements; non-standard work; the right to disconnect;
The proliferation of the teleworking phenomenon entails a number of aspects, such as the organization of working time or the work safety and health of teleworkers, which are not fully covered by the current legislation. This puts teleworkers at an increased risk of being treated less favorably than regular workers and implicitly calls for additional protective measures for teleworkers. Consequently, the present paper offers an overview of the main legislative documents adopted by the European Union, which concern teleworkers directly or indirectly, in order to ascertain the extent to which the current legislative standards meet the specific needs of the teleworkers. Also relevant for this aim is the comparative law analysis which demonstrates how some states of the European Union have increased their efforts to amend their legal systems, in order to eliminate the discriminatory practices detrimental to teleworkers and to enhance the protection they enjoy. The study presents the different legislative perspectives of Germany, France, Spain, Italy.
More...Keywords: international jurisdiction of the courts; discretionary powers of court; convenient forum; alternative forum; Brussels convention; European Court of Justice
Forum non conveniens is a legal doctrine used in countries that subscribe to the common law tradition. It relates to the issue of international jurisdiction of a court and signifies a discretionary power of a court to refuse to hear a proceeding brought before it for which it would otherwise be authorised to hear, when it ascertains that there is another, foreign court that is more appropriate to hear and deliberate on the proceeding. There are two basic presuppositions for the application of this doctrine. First is that the proceeding in question is one for which there is a concurrent jurisdiction of courts from at least two countries, and the other is that the court to which the proceeding is filed does possess a discretionary right to decide on its own jurisdiction. The doctrine of forum non conveniens, which incidentally originates from Scottish law, has been first and foremost accepted and developed by the US and England, followed by other common law countries. It is an integral part of legal systems of these countries and is part of their national rules on international jurisdiction of courts. Seeing that Great Britain acceded to the Brussels Convention on Jurisdiction and the Enforcement of Judgments in Civil and Commercial Matters of 1968 that regulates these issues between European Union member countries and does not envisage application of this theory, the question was raised as to whether English courts can use this national rule still and in what cases. Decisions of English courts expressed diametrically different views on these issues until 2005 when the European Court of Justice in the case of Owusu gave its final answer to this question which says that the doctrine forum non conveniens may not be implemented not even in cases when the alternative forum is a court of a state that is not a member of the European Union. A detailed chronological analysis of all of these factors is the subject of this paper.
More...Keywords: computer system and data; Convention on Cybercrime; cyber law; Europe; Romania;
Since the establishment of the Council of Europe Convention on Cybercrime in 2001, Romania has been at the forefront of ratifying and implementing the provisions and various directives and cooperating with international partners. In 2021, Romania became the headquarters of the European Center of Industrial, Technological and Research Competence (ECCC) in the field of cybersecurity. Its mission is securing digital infrastructures, conducting research in the field of cybersecurity and making technological developments. Because Romania is such an influential leader in European cybercrime, the purpose of this investigation report is to explore the level of implementation of international law into Romanian law, as well as to discover possible shortcomings. The report will specifically explore the implementation of the Convention on Cybercrime and related European directives into the national framework.
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