On the Delineation of European Union Law

Abstract

There is no doubt that European Union law provisions which grant rights to individuals have a greater impact on national legal orders than any other provisions of Union law. As more and more consequences are derived from the notion of an individual right, i.e. as the right to judicial protection is gradually given more substance, one may in theory imagine this as ultimately leading to scepticism and a certain reluctance on the part of Member States to vote new legislation that entails the grant of rights. One commentator has already pointed to how rights may possibly have been ‘evacuated from directives’ as a consequence of the introduction of the Member State liability regime. There seems, however, to be little, if any, support for this idea.