This book features eleven contributions on the fundamental principles of EEA law: legislative and judicial homogeneity, reciprocity, prosperity, priority, authority, loyalty, proportionality, equality, liability and sovereignty. Written by EFTA Court and national judges, high EFTA officials, private practitioners and scholars, it raises awareness of EEA law and provides insights for EEA and EU law practitioners and researchers. It focuses on the principles at the core of EEA law, some of which are common to EU and EEA law, while others have a specific place in EEA law and some ensure consistency between the EEA Agreement and the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union. It is the only book to focus on the fundamental principles of EEA law.

This Handbook comprehensively addresses the breadth of law encompassed by the EEA Agreement, which extends the European Union’s Single Market to three EFTA countries: Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway. The Handbook is first and foremost intended for practitioners and legal scholars, but its approachable style makes it readily accessible for students. The Handbook provides the reader with a thorough grounding in the EEA Agreement, detailing how secondary EU law becomes applicable in the EFTA pillar, and the roles played by the EFTA Surveillance Authority and the EFTA Court. It considers the EEA Agreement from the respective perspectives of the national authorities, courts, and the legal professions of Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway. The book meticulously examines substantive EEA law, beginning with the general principles and the four freedoms, through competition law and State aid to such aspects as the precautionary principle, tax law and mutual administrative and legal assistance. Emphasis is placed on jurisprudence and especially that of the EFTA Court. Each chapter has been written by a judge, noted practitioner or eminent academic in their respective fields and the book is divided into twelve parts: Part I History and main features of the EEA Agreement Part II Genesis of EEA Law Part III Institutions and Procedure Part IV National Authorities in the EFTA Pillar Part V National Courts in the EFTA Pillar Part VI The Practicing Bar in the EFTA Pillar Part VII General Principles and Prohibition Part VIII The Fundamental Freedoms Part IX Competition Law and Related Matters Part X Further Areas of Economic Law Part XI Law of Natural and Economic Resources Part XII Social Protection and Public Health

This book compares and explains how the key European Union and European Economic Area legal principles of consistent interpretation are applied and developed by national courts in 12 different European Union and European Free Trade Association Member States.

This Research Handbook offers a comprehensive study of existing and emerging general principles of EU law by scholars from a wide range of expertise in EU law, international law, legal theory and different areas of substantive law. It explores the theory, content, role and function of general principles in EU law to better understand general principles as a mechanism for the substantive openness of the EU legal order as well as for cross-fertilization and coherence of legal orders. Their potential as a tool to manage the interaction of legal regimes and orders is a particular focal point and will make this Handbook a must-read for scholars of EU Law.

The effectiveness of European Community (EC) law and the way it is enforced in order to assure the judicial protection of individuals penetrating into the national legal orders is probably the most distinguishing feature of this unique legal order, in contrast with classic international law. By now, this principle and doctrine created by the European Court of Justice has become part of the European legal order with general acceptance in all EU countries. By contrast, the effectiveness of European Economic Area (EEA) law, and the way this other even more sui generis legal system provides comparable rights for European Free Trade Association (EFTA)-EEA citizens, is a silent revolution brought by the EFTA Court that has not been properly researched and exposed in the field of European law. This book summarizes and explains the basic principles governing the relationship between EEA law and the national legal systems, while searching for similarities and differences with EC law. The research questions explored in this collection include: How does EEA law achieve supremacy over national laws? Does EEA law have direct applicability? Can we speak, under some circumstances, of a sort of direct effect of EEA law? Can EEA law be defined as having "quasi" primacy and "quasi" direct effect? What about the indirect effect of EEA law (duty of consistent interpretation)? Last but not least, does the doctrine of State liability for breaches of EC law apply to EEA law? If so, what are the differences between the two legal orders? These questions are explored from a European perspective in order to help understand the effectiveness of European law, the special relationship between the Community/EEA legal orders with the national legal systems when the enforcement of European rights, and that the judicial protection of individuals are at stake.

This book is based on a conference where speakers were asked to reflect on the case law of the EFTA Court and its role in the European Economic Area.

The intertwinement of EC law and national law may create unforeseeability in situations where EC law invades the national cases. This study contributes to the contemporary discussion, which wrestles with questions such as: What have been the visions and objectives for European integration in the last decades? How to describe European Union as a political entity and a legal system? What is the relationship between legal certainty, rule of law, various general principles and human rights?

The rapid development of information technology has exacerbated the need for robust personal data protection, the right to which is safeguarded by both European Union (EU) and Council of Europe (CoE) instruments. Safeguarding this important right entails new and significant challenges as technological advances expand the frontiers of areas such as surveillance, communication interception and data storage. This handbook is designed to familiarise legal practitioners not specialised in data protection with this emerging area of the law. It provides an overview of the EU’s and the CoE’s applicable legal frameworks. It also explains key case law, summarising major rulings of both the Court of Justice of the European Union and the European Court of Human Rights. In addition, it presents hypothetical scenarios that serve as practical illustrations of the diverse issues encountered in this ever-evolving field.

This book will help students grasp the complex system of EU law.

2.2 Procedural Rules and Issues