Articles for tag: EGMR, Europa, Gerichtsbarkeit, Italien, SAR

Externalising Migration Control

On 20th of May 2025, the European Court of Human Rights declared the case of S.S. and others v Italy inadmissible under Art.1 of the European Convention on Human Rights. The decision marks a missed opportunity. Instead of addressing the question of functional jurisdiction in the context of externalised migration control, the Court found that Italy does not enjoy extraterritorial jurisdiction over a group of irregular migrants whose ship was wrecked on the high seas near the Libyan coast. The ruling is another illustration of how externalised border control and “pull-back” policies are becoming normalised in Europe.

2. Juli 2025

, , , ,

From Dialogue to Discord

Advocate General Ćapeta delivered her Opinion regarding a violation of Article 2 TEU, which lies at the heart of the pending case before the CJEU – a case that bears, quite appropriately, the name “Valeurs de l’Union”. Her opinion is likely to cause a stir. Even though this is not the final judgment, it is unprecedented for Article 2 TEU to be declared justiciable and found to have been infringed.

10. Juni 2025

, , ,

We the Bugs

On April 14, 2025, the Hungarian parliament passed the 15th Amendment to the Fundamental Law, triggering mass protest across Budapest. Amongst its most far-reaching provisions is the constitutional entrenchment of binary sex. Read alongside a reworded Article XVI, which affirms that “every child has the right to the protection and care necessary for his or her proper physical, mental, and moral development”, these provisions establish a new hierarchy of fundamental rights, placing child protection above all others, including the right to peaceful assembly. These changes may now lend formal constitutional legitimacy to discriminatory legislation seeking to ban Pride Parades. 

23. Mai 2025

, , ,

Testing the Waters of Private Data Pools

Nowadays, data is mostly collected not by state actors but by businesses. In 2010, the German Constitutional Court held that the legislator has to evaluate the overall level of surveillance in Germany before enacting new data retention obligations. In light of the recent rejuvenised discussions about data retention and a general surveillance account, this text explores whether such an account needs to consider private data pools and what is required for a successful evaluation.

29. November 2024

, , ,

Stuck Between Unity and Diversity

The role of the EU Charter in disputes concerning fundamental rights standards between the EU and Member States has been characterized by ambiguity ever since the Charter’s inception. As the EU deepens integration of Member States to effectively face the challenges ahead, I advocate for a pluralistic interpretation of Article 53 of the Charter that allows for a greater degree of accommodation of national particularities. In that way, one would reduce constitutional tensions and find that there may be unity in diversity after all.

2. November 2024

, , , ,

Flying Blind

A quarter of a billion euros. That was the final price tag the last time German politicians and constitutional law professors assured us that a controversial German idea was compatible with EU law. Yet the Autobahn car toll for foreigners only pushed through by the Bavarian regional conservatives (CSU) and passed by the Federal government grand coalition of Conservatives and Social Democrats was – quite predictably from the outset – contrary to European law and cost German taxpayers many millions of euros in contractual penalties following clarification by the ECJ in 2019. The way the current refugee debate in Germany is handled could end up costing Germany, i.e. all of us, much more – not so much in euros, but in trust in the reliability of Germany in general, as an EU Member State, and more generally trust in the reliability of the law.

16. September 2024

, , , ,

Auf Europablindflug in der Asyldebatte

Eine Viertelmilliarde Euro. Das war das letzte Mal am Ende der Preis, als deutsche Politiker und Verfassungsrechtsprofessoren im Brustton der Überzeugung Europarecht erklärten und alles rechtmäßig fanden. Dabei war die von der CSU durchgesetzte und von der Großen Koalition aus Union und SPD verabschiedete PKW-Maut für Ausländer – von vornherein absehbar – europarechtswidrig und kostete den deutschen Steuerzahler nach der Klarstellung durch den EuGH viele Millionen Euro Vertragsstrafen. Der Umgang mit dem Recht in der aktuellen Flüchtlingsdebatte könnte Deutschland, also uns alle, am Ende viel mehr kosten – nicht so sehr an Euro, aber an Vertrauen in die Verlässlichkeit Deutschlands und die deutsche Europapolitik, und allgemeiner in die Verlässlichkeit des Rechts.

13. September 2024

, , , ,

Louise Weiss

When you hear the name 'Louise Weiss', you may think of the European Parliament building in Strasbourg that bears her name, or of her election to the first European Parliament and her inaugural speech. What may not come to mind is the woman Louise Weiss herself and the outstanding achievements throughout her life. This brief profile is a reminder that she should be remembered for her tireless search for peace, her tireless fight for women's rights, her endless humanitarian work and for being truly 'European'.

17. Juni 2024

, , , ,

Why Europe Needs a Harmonised Access to Information Act

May the 3rd marks press freedom day around the world. Today, many articles and editorials will be published across Europe, highlighting the need to put an end to threats faced by journalists in Member States. While all these pan-European threats certainly need to be tackled, one fundamental pan-European crisis faced by journalists across the continent remains widely ignored: the difficulties to access information held by public authorities and the disparities among Member States when requesting data. This article aims to review the current situation of the right to request information from public bodies in EU Member States and offers a proposal that opens the door to discussing the possibility of harmonising such a right through the internal market competence.

3. Mai 2024

, ,