Fundamental rights (EU)

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The protection of fundamental rights in the European Union is anchored in primary law in Article 6 of the Treaty on European Union . Organs of the Union and the Member States must comply with the resulting fundamental rights in application of Union law. The Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union drawn up by the first European Convention , which has been legally binding since 2009, codified the fundamental rights granted by Union law for the first time. In addition to this charter, according to Article 6, Paragraph 3 of the EU Treaty , the fundamental rights of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) and the fundamental rights of the constitutional traditions of the member states are also part of the law of the European Union.

history

The founding treaties of the European Communities ( ECSC , EAG , EEC ) did not contain any protection of fundamental rights. In particular, there was a lack of an explicit catalog of fundamental rights.

First decisions of the ECJ

As early as 1969, however, the ECJ ruled in the Stauder ruling that the Court of Justice must ensure that the fundamental rights contained in the general principles of the Community legal order ... He repeated this view in the decision of the Internationale Handelsgesellschaft in 1970. In that decision he also stated that the validity of the act of the Union institutions could only be assessed in accordance with Union law.

As long as I

Despite the contrary view of the ECJ, the German Federal Constitutional Court (BVerfG) ruled in its decision in 1974, often referred to as Solange I , that the BVerfG also had the right to examine secondary Union law for its conformity with national (German) fundamental rights. This right would exist as long as Union law does not provide an adequate catalog of fundamental rights that corresponds to the German Basic Law .

As long as II

In the Solange II decision of 1986, the BVerfG revised its view. It saw the (basic) legal protection provided by the ECJ as sufficient and recognized its competence. This applies as long as [the ECJ] guarantees effective protection of fundamental rights vis-à-vis the sovereignty of the Union in general .

European Union

The Maastricht Treaty , which came into force on November 1, 1993, also codified the protection of fundamental rights under primary law for the first time. For example, Art. 6 (1) TEU stipulates that human rights are one of the principles of the Union. Art. 6 para. 2 TEU stipulates that the Union respects fundamental rights. The Lisbon Treaty , which came into force on December 1, 2009, also made the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights legally binding. Exceptions to this existed in the UK and exist in Poland and the Czech Republic .

Current situation

The rights protected by the ECJ include the rights arising from the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights ( Art. 6 Paragraph 1 EU Treaty ) and the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) and “ from the constitutional traditions common to the member states as general principles part of Union law “( Art. 6 Para. 3 EU Treaty). This was already established case law of the ECJ and was codified in this form.

The Union is called upon to comply with these regulations. This means that both the institutions of the European Union and the Member States are bound by these fundamental rights. The ECJ is only exceptionally competent in these areas, but this does not contradict a commitment to fundamental rights in this area as well. The relevant competence of the ECJ only applies insofar as the Union is materially responsible for the respective area. Only if organs of the Union or of the member states have to apply Union standards in the respective matters, the fundamental rights of the Union must also be observed; the nationally established fundamental rights apply to other activities of the member states.

The ECHR was adopted by all currently 28 member states of the Union, apart from EU law. There is also an indirect binding to the ECHR via EU law (Art. 6 Para. 2 EU). This is relevant insofar as some states entered reservations in certain matters when they joined the ECHR under international law. If a state applies national standards, the ECHR is therefore not applicable or only applicable to a limited extent in these areas. With regard to the norms of the ECHR which indirectly flow into the national legal systems via EU law, such objections are, however, irrelevant. If a standard falls under the competence of the Union, it can therefore take action in the event of violations of the ECHR, even if the state raised an objection when it joined the ECHR. In addition to the ECHR itself, its additional protocols are also relevant.

If a member state violates EU fundamental rights on a permanent basis, Article 7 of the EU Treaty enables severe consequences that can even lead to the withdrawal of voting rights in the Council of the European Union . However, such a decision must be taken unanimously by all other Member States.

literature

  • Hans-Georg Dederer: The architecture of the European area of ​​fundamental rights . In: Journal for Foreign Public Law and International Law (ZaöRV) . Vol. 66, 2006, pp. 575–624 ( PDF )
  • Hans D. Jarass: Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union including the fundamental rights developed by the ECJ and the fundamental rights regulation of the Treaties. Comment . Beck Verlag, Munich 2010, ISBN 978-3-406-60337-2 .
  • Hans-Werner Rengeling, Peter Szczekalla: Fundamental rights in the European Union. Charter of Fundamental Rights and General Principles of Law . Carl Heymanns Verlag, Cologne, Berlin, Munich 2004, ISBN 3-452-25567-0 .
  • Beate Rudolf, The new European architecture of basic rights - mandate for lawyers. National, European and international protection of fundamental and human rights , Anwaltsblatt (AnwBl.) 2011, 153–158 [1]

Web links

  • Maria Martina Risse, The applicability of EU fundamental rights in procedural and substantive criminal law [2]
  • Kilian Wegner, The "Fransson" decision of the European Court of Justice - a shock in the system of European fundamental rights? [3]

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Rs C-29/69 Erich Stauder against the city of Ulm - social welfare office.
  2. ↑ Rs C-11/70 Internationale Handelsgesellschaft mbH against import and storage center for grain and animal feed.
  3. ↑ Solange II , BVerfGE 73, 339, 387
  4. ↑ Federal Government | European Lexicon | C | Charter of Fundamental Rights. Retrieved May 30, 2018 .
  5. ^ Fischer, Köck, Karollus: Europarecht. 4th edition, Linde Verlag, Vienna. Margin no.903.
  6. ^ Fischer, Köck, Karollus: Europarecht. 4th edition, Linde Verlag, Vienna. 902 and 904.