The Relationship Between Community Law and National Law. Jean Monnet/Robert Schuman Paper Series Vol. 5 No. 33, October 2005

Stiernstrom, Martin. (2005) The Relationship Between Community Law and National Law. Jean Monnet/Robert Schuman Paper Series Vol. 5 No. 33, October 2005.

Abstract

[From the introduction]. This paper is concerned with the relationship between Community law and national law. The most important features of this relationship are the supremacy of Community law over national law, the direct effectiveness of Community law in the national courts and the procedures by which Community law can be enforced in the Member States. Focus will mainly be on the first of these features. The Treaties establishing the European Communities (ECSC, EURATOM and EEC)1 are more than classical international agreements creating mutual obligations between the contracting parties. By ratifying those Treaties the Member States intended to do more than that, although they most probably did not foresee all the conclusions which the European Court of Justice (ECJ) has drawn from the specific nature of those Treaties over the years. (2) A good question is: what is it that distinguishes them from other international agreements?