Francqui Chair 2021

SOME REFLECTIONS ON THE RULE OF LAW WITHIN THE LAW OF THE EUROPEAN UNION

by Eleanor Sharpston
Former Advocate General at the Court of Justice of the European Union

The chair concerned the protection of the rule of law in the EU. Why does it matter? What does it really mean? What are the sources of this principle? In order to answer these questions, Eleanor Sharpston provided a set of lessons focusing on the protection of this fundamental value in different fields of EU law such as asylum law and external relations of the EU - and on questions linked to the right of access to a court and the independence of the judiciary. These issues are very topical, notably due to the current context of democratic backlash in several Member States of the EU. 

Eleanor Sharpston a dispensé ses leçons sur le thème de l’état de droit dans l’Union. Pourquoi est-ce important? Quelles en sont les sources? Qu’est-ce que cela signifie exactement? Une série de leçons portant sur la protection de cette valeur fondamentale dans différents domaines du droit de l’Union - dont celui de l’asile et des relations extérieures - ainsi que sur des questions liées au droit d’accès à un juge et à l’indépendance du pouvoir judiciaire ont été proposées dans ce cadre. Ces questions sont d’une très grande actualité notamment en raison du déclin du respect de cette valeur dans certains États membres de l’Union.
 

CONFERENCES

Watch the videos on our youtube channel!

• Inaugural lecture: Taking the rule of law seriously – but what does that actually mean? (1 March 2021)
• The rule of law – why it matters? (2 March 2021)
• The rule of law and access to a court (8 March 2021)
• The rule of law and the refugee crisis (9 March 2021)
• The rule of law and the rights of the terrorist suspect (15 March 2021)
• The rule of law and the independence of the judiciary (16 March 2021)