Democracy and Rule of Law in the European Union

The present collection of essays offers the reader a broad range of original perspectives on democracy and the rule of law in the European Union, approaching the existing policy area from new points of view. Leading experts from different countries and backgrounds focus on how democracy and the rule of law are related to topics like security, pension rights, judicial cooperation and human rights protection. Their expert views are based on a combination of theory and knowledge acquired in their practice as academics or practitioners in the field of European integration..

The issue of the rule of law and democracy is close to the heart of Professor Jaap de Zwaan, a true European, building bridges between countries and peoples. He has written extensively on the subject of European integration. Therefore, this collection of expert views is not only an original and valuable contribution to the literature and discussion on the development and enlargement of the European Union, but at the same time it is a tribute to Jaap de Zwaan, whose academic and diplomatic career can be characterized as always serving “an ever closer Union”.

Flora Goudappel is Jean Monnet Professor of EU Trade Law in the Overseas Territories at the Erasmus University Rotterdam and a consultant on European Union law  

What is the Rule of Law and Why is it so Important?.- National Parliaments and EU Economic Governance. In Search of New Ways to Enhance Democratic Legitimacy.- The Growing Role of the Union in Protection of Rule of Law.- The Rise and Rise of EU Citizenship.- The Role of National Courts in the Process of Legal Integration in the European Union: Retrospective and Prospective.- Towards a European Council of the Judiciary: Some Reflections on the Administration of the EU Courts.- How to Define the European Union?.- Negotiations in the Ordinary Legislative Procedure (Ordinary legislative procedure), the perspective of the European Parliament.- The European Union Development Policies are Based on European Values, Democracy, Respect For the Rule of law and Human Rights.- EU Enlargement, its Impact at the European and National level and the Case of Albania.- European Ruling on Pensions: A Second Warning for the Netherlands.- Over the Edge: European External Policy in Evolution.- Confiscation of Proceeds From Crime – A Challenge For Criminal Justice?.- European Union's Readmission Policy in the Post-Stockholm Programme Era.- Das Regionale Privatrecht und die Harmonisierung des Privatrechts in der Europäischen Union.- Selected Legal and Policy Implications Arising from the EU-ICC Agreement of 2006.