PROJECT NUMBER: 1250102

Summer School on EU law and its implementation

2-13/Jul/2012  •  Luxembourg

Introduction
Project Leaders
Peter Goldschmidt
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Dr. Alina Domaradzka
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Target group
EU regulatory affairs professionals from national, regional and local administrations and EU institutions as well as business and professional associations, who are affected by European Union legislation (e.g. by participation in EU law-making, law approximation or application of national laws derived from EU law) as well as other professionals wishing to gain a better understanding of how EU law is adopted and implemented at the EU and national level.

Description
The body of national law derived from EU directives and regulations expands into all areas of government, and officials in both national and EU administrative bodies play an increasingly active role as administrators and enforcers of EU law. Therefore, they need sufficient understanding of EU law to avoid actions incompatible with EU rules, leading to compensation claims against them and their authority. On the other hand, EU regulatory affairs professionals from business and professional associations are required to possess good knowledge of EU legislative framework in order to actively influence the EU law-making process.
The course is divided into three parts, all taking into account the changes brought about by the Lisbon Treaty. It first provides a comprehensive overview of the constitutional organisation of the European Union, including fundamental principles on which the Union is funded (5 days). Secondly, it offers an overview of specific policy areas (2 to 3 days). Lastly, it introduces a practical overview of the implementation of EU law at the EU level (comitology) and by the Member States and the consequences thereof for the EU Member States in terms of administrative capacities and human resources (2 to 3 days).
When reviewing the constitutional organisation of the EU, particular attention will be paid to the legislative and institutional framework of the EU, including the functioning, interrelation and decision making processes of the various institutions post-Lisbon and the role of the Member States in these processes as well as possible consequences of not fulfilling Treaty obligations.
In addition, the new procedures for the EU law implementation at EU level (the new comitology procedure) will be analysed in more detail in order to fine-tune participants’ knowledge about differences between different categories of legal acts introduced by the Lisbon Treaty (legislative vs. non-legislative acts), while the sessions on implementation at the national level discuss practical approaches to identify national capacity needs and to react accordingly.
The sessions focusing on Internal Market law will explain the universal operation of principles founding the four freedoms, for example, the non-discrimination, proportionality and mutual recognition principles, while the sessions on Justice Freedom and Security focus on judicial and law enforcement cooperation, the free movement of people (including 3rd country nationals) and ejustice. The programme also reviews the EU judicial system, including the tasks, structure and procedures of the European Courts and their role in the development of the law as well as the national courts’ role as enforcers of EU law.

Learning Methodology
The Summer School is highly interactive in nature, and although it is based upon a solid foundation of presentations, more than forty percent of the time will be dedicated to workshops, case studies, simulations and a study visit to the European Court of Justice.
Case studies and workshops will put the knowledge gained by participants in a practical context to demonstrate the relevance and consequences of the EU rules for their daily work.
During the second part of the programme (see above), participants will be able to chose between two different sets of sessions: one focusing on internal market issues and one covering justice and home affairs as well as the common foreign and security policy, thus allowing participants to tailor the summer school to meet their personal and professional needs and interests.

Objectives
• To provide participants with indepth knowledge of the fundamental concepts of EU law and EU law-making process and to deepen their understanding of their role in this process and obligations imposed by EU law to which they are subject
• To offer a practical overview of the implementation of EU law at both the EU and national levels
• To allow participants to gain practical understanding of the comitology process after Lisbon
• To fine-tune practical understanding of the relevance and impact of EU legislation on their daily work and the mechanisms of its correct implementation into national systems
• With regard to the implementation of EU law, special attention will be paid to the similarities and differences between the EU Member States and the Candidate and Associate countries
• To provide a platform for the exchange of experience, information sharing and professional networking.

This seminar will also be held in:
1/Jul/13 • Luxembourg