Mariolina Eliantonio

Judicial review in an integrated administration: the case of 'composite procedures'

In the past years, increasingly more and more forms of cooperation have been set up across the different national and European administrative levels with the aim of putting European policies into effect. While the administrative level is becoming more ‘integrated’, the judicial system remains based on a strict separation between the EU and the national levels of jurisdiction. The aim of this article is to show how the operation of the system of ‘integrated administration’ may pose problems of judicial accountability. The gaps in judicial protection will be examined using the example of the ‘composite procedures’, i.e. decision-making processes with input from administrative actors from different jurisdictions, where the final decision, issued by aMember State or an EU authority, is based on procedures involving more or less formalized input of the various participating authorities. After categorising the various composite procedures, the problems connected with access to court when challenging measures adopted in the course of the composite procedures will be analysed, together with an exemplification of these problems by use of a specific case study. Throughout the discussion, the relevance of the recently published ReNEUAL Model Rules will be specifically address and evaluated. Finally, solutions will be brought forward as to how the identified gaps could be effectively filled. DOI 10.7590/187479814X14186465138022 * REVIEW OF EUROPEAN ADMINISTRATIVE LAW; VOL. 7, NR. 2, 65-102, PARIS LEGAL PUBLISHERS

Harmonized technical standards as part of EU law: Juridification with a number of unresolved legitimacy concerns? Case C-613/14 James Elliot Construction Limited v. Irish Asphalt Limited, EU:C:2016:821

Do harmonized technical standards (HTSs) qualify as ‘acts of the EU institutions’ for the purposes of a preliminary question of interpretation under Article 267 TFEU? This was the core question posed to the European Court of Justice (CJEU) by the Irish High Court in James Elliot. As such, the case aimed to give a much-needed clarification on the legal nature of these peculiar acts issued by the European Standardization Bodies (ESOs) in the context of the so-called ‘New Approach Directives’. Their peculiarity stems, in particular, from a number of features these measures possess. First, as indicated, they are adopted pursuant to the New Approach Directives. These are acts based on a

The Modernisation of the Rules of Administrative Judicial Procedure Under Scrutiny: The Rulings of the Belgian Constitutional Court on the 'Administrative Loop' in a Comparative Perspective - Concluding Remarks

This concluding contribution of the Special Issue briefly introduces the Federal and Flemish administrative loops and their other national “look-a-likes”. Thereafter, the objections raised by the Belgian Constitutional Court will be presented and analysed in light of the possible implications for the other legal systems presented in this Special Issue, namely Italy, Germany, Sweden and the Netherlands. The contribution shows that all legal systems need to delicately balance efficiency and the protection of fundamental rights. Furthermore, while speedier decision-making and dispute resolution is a shared aim of the legal systems presented, the solutions found to protect individuals’ rights (and the intensity to which this is a concern at all) can vary quite significantly.

Information Exchange in European Administrative Law:: A Threat to Effective Judicial Protection?

European policies are increasingly implemented through the joint production, gathering, management and exchange of information. These information exchange mechanisms may pose problems in the context of judicial protection because it may be difficult to identify the actor responsible for a piece of information which was the basis for a final measure, and the act of information sharing may not be challengeable before a court. The purpose of this article is to examine the gaps in judicial protection – if any – arising from the widespread use of information sharing activities in European administrative law. After an overview of the information exchange and management activities in European administrative law, the gaps in judicial protection are identified and discussed in the context of two case studies. The central argument is that although the system of administrative decision-making is becoming increasingly integrated, the disintegrated system of judicial protection poses a serious threat to the principle of effective judicial protection in information sharing activities that are aimed at implementing EU policies. The article ends with recommendations on how these judicial protection gaps could be filled.

Wir mussen reden! - We need to have a serious talk! The interaction between the infringement proceedings and the preliminary reference procedure in ensuring compliance with EU environmental standards: A case study of trianel, Altrip and Commission v Germany

The preliminary ruling procedure and the infringement proceedings are generally considered to constitute complementary means for the enforcement of European Union law. This paper critically assesses the actual complementarity of the two procedures from the perspective of the communication of and approach to a problem before the Court of Justice. Furthermore, it considers to which extent this complementarity has improved or created new complications with respect to compliance with EU environmental standards. These two questions will be answered on the basis of a case study concerning three different rulings rendered by the Court of Justice in which one particular problem of (in-) compatibility of national rules with environmental Union law was at stake, namely the German Schutznormtheorie.

La riforma del Senato in prospettiva europea: tendenza o controtendenza?

La riforma della Costituzione, attualmente all’esame delle Camere, si propone di introdurre riforme significative nel sistema bicamerale italiano, modificando il ruolo, la composizione e le funzioni del Senato. Questa riforma e stata presentata dall’attuale governo come un modo per allinearsi alle tendenze di molti altri Paesi europei per quello che riguarda la composizione e il ruolo delle camere alte nell’architettura statale. Al fine di verificare se la riforma costituzionale si pone effettivamente in continuita o in controtendenza con altri ordinamenti europei, i vari elementi del disegno di legge costituzionale 1429 sono stati analizzati, proponendo un paragone con i sistemi parlamentari di altri Paesi europei quali la Francia, la Germania ed i Paesi Bassi. L’analisi condotta ha mostrato che, pur mantenendo il Senato della riforma svariate peculiarita rispetto ai modelli analizzati, il processo di riforma costituzionale promosso dall’attuale Presidente del Consiglio portera ad un allineamento generale della situazione italiana agli standard europei.

Regional courts and locus standi for private parties: can the CJEU learn something from the others?

AbstractThe Court of Justice of the European Union (cjeu) has taken a restrictive approach when interpreting the standing requirements applicable to private parties wanting to challenge eu legal measures. The Lisbon Treaty introduced some change, but access to the Court remains overly restricted for private parties. The European Union is by far the most successful regional integration community there is, and it has been widely imitated. This article seeks to explore and compare the standing requirements applicable to private parties before the cjeu and other regional courts in order to see if the cjeu has something to learn from the others.

Towards an ever dirtier Europe? The restrictive standing of environmental NGOs before the European Courts and the Aarhus Convention

In European Union law, the existence of an effective rem¬edy to challenge EU actions has been at the core of a heated ongo¬ing debate, since individual applicants and NGOs often have a hard time obtaining locus standi in annulment proceedings, due to the restrictive interpretation given by the European Court of Justice to the standing requirements provided by (the former) Article 230(4) of the EC Treaty. The aim of this paper is to show how access to justice before the EU courts for environmental NGOs has been significantly curtailed up to the present, and to discuss the changes to the standing test brought by the Lisbon Treaty by analysing its content and the (to date) limited interpretation given by the European Courts to the term ‘regulatory act’ introduced by the Treaty. On the basis of this examination, it will be shown how the recent amendments have not changed the position of NGOs who wish to challenge EU environmental measures and how, therefore, a significant gap in judicial protection and a potential violation of Articles 9(2) and (3) of the Aarhus Convention still remain.

‘Sed Fugit Interea Fugit Irreparabile Tempus’ – Time Limits Under English Law: The Requirement of 'Promptness' and the Scrutiny of the Court of Justice of the European Union

National time limits for challenging the administrative actions have been often reviewed by the Court of Justice of the European Union for their compliance with the principles of equivalence and effectiveness. In the recent Uniplex ruling, the Court reviewed the requirement, provided by English law, that claims arising in the framework of public contracts be brought ‘promptly’. After a short introduction to the facts at stake in Uniplex, the requirement of ‘promptness’ and the criticisms which arose in this respect are analysed. Thereafter, the Court’s ruling in Uniplex is discussed.

The Application of EC Law Ex Officio - Some News From the Italian Administrative Courts

This paper seeks to provide an overview of the application, by the Italian administrative courts, of the ECJ’s rulings on the duty of national courts to apply Community law of their own motion. The relevant national legislative provisions and the potential impact that the ECJ’s case law may have on the Italian system of administrative justice are analysed. Furthermore, the national case law where the ECJ’s standards have been applied by the national administrative courts is examined. Some concluding remarks discuss the feasibility of the approach adopted by the ECJ with regard to the duty of national courts to act ex officio.