Standing to Enforce European Union Law before National Courts

Hilde K Ellingsen is a Lawyer and Partner at Lund & Co, Norway.

• 1. Introduction I. The Topic of this Book II. Clarification and Elaboration of Core Concepts III. The Structure of the Book 2. Normative Underpinnings in the Court’s Case Law I. Introduction II. The Rule of Law (as an ‘Essentially Contested Concept’) III. The Need for (and Difficulties Associated with) Distinguishing Rights Protection from Effectiveness Per Se IV. ‘Eurolegalism’: The Particularities of the Union Mode of Regulation 3. The Union Law Principles at Play I. Introduction II. The Evolvement of Private Enforcement III. Equivalence, Effectiveness and Effective Judicial Protection IV. Effective Judicial Protection as the Leading Principle and Rationale in Relation to Standing V. A Twofold Approach to Dissecting Union Law Requirements on Standing 4. Invoking the Principle of Effective Judicial Protection I. Introduction II. The Relationship between Rights and Judicial Protection in EU Law III. The Concept of Union RightsIV. Requirement of an Arguable Claim 5. EU Law Requirements on National Standing Rules I. Introduction II. Harmonised Standing Rules Based on the Principle of Effective Judicial ProtectionIII. Standing Before the Union Courts – A Useful Guideline? IV. The Union Doctrine of Standing: Fleshing Out the Criteria V. The Union Right to Standing: The Scope for Balancing Countervailing Considerations VI. The Effects of the Doctrine in a Concrete Case VII. The Legality and Legitimacy of a Court-made Doctrine of Standing 6. What Standing is Not About: Distinguishing Direct Effect, Invocability and Standing I. Introduction II. Direct Effect III. The Right to Invoke Union Law Provisions When Already before the Court 7. The Relationship between Standing and (Substantive) Remedies I. Introduction II. Remedial Autonomy and its Limitations III. The Right to Specific Union Law Remedies IV. Distinguishing Standing to Pursue Union Law Remedies and the Right to Obtain Such Remedies V. Alternative Forms of Legal Recourse 8. Standing to Seek Judicial Review of Administrative Decisions I. Introduction II. Standing Doctrines in the Member States III. Illustration I: Standing in the Area of Environmental Law IV. Illustration II: Standing in the Telecommunications Sector 9. Standing to Seek Judicial Review of Legislative Acts I. Introduction II. Review of Legislative Acts in the Member States III. Situations Where Incidental Review is Sufficient from the Perspective of Union Law IV. A Free-standing Action as an Avenue of Last Resort10. Standing to Seek Compensation from the State I. Introduction II. The Contours of the State Liability Doctrine III. The Criteria for Having a Right of Action in Damages IV. Autonomous Union Law Remedy or Remedy of Last Resort? 11. Standing in Proceedings against Private Parties I. Introduction II. Union Law and Private Legal Relationships III. Various Ways to Invoke Union Law against Private Parties IV. The Requirement of a Horizontal Right of Action V. Standing to Seek InjunctionsVI. Standing to Seek Contractual Remedies 12. Enforcing the Rights of Others I. Introduction II. Claimants Whose Rights are (Also) Affected III. Claimants Indirectly Affected by a Union Law Infringement IV. Rights of Successors: Assignment of Claims and Third Party Contracts V. Third Parties Suffering from the ‘Passing-on’ of Unlawfully Levied Taxes VI. Third Parties Suffering Economic Harm through the Infringement of the Rights of Others 13. Enforcement of Union Law in the Name of Effectiveness I. Introduction II. Why a Rights-orientated Approach is Insufficient III. Starting Point: No Mandatory Public Interest Standing Without Specific RegulationIV. Infringements Committed by Member States V. Infringements Committed by Private Parties VI. Concluding Remarks 14. Conclusions I. Key Findings II. Union Law Standing: No Panacea for Effectiveness and Effective Judicial Protection

A welcome contribution to the literature, and it will surely be of great help to legal practitioners, including national and EU law judges. It will hopefully inspire other researchers to pursue the problem of standing further.