Abstract
This article analyses the ECJ’s ruling in Case C-66/18 (Central European University), in which the Court found that two amendments to Hungary’s Law on Higher Education violate EU law and the WTO GATS Agreement. The ruling is remarkable in legal and political terms: it touches upon a series of fundamental issues, such as the EU’s efforts to protect European values, democracy and the rule of law in its Member States, infringement proceedings against Member States for their failure to comply with international agreements, the applicability of the Fundamental Rights Charter in EU external relations, the tension between the ECJ and the WTO dispute settlement system, national measures enacted to ward off ‘undesirable’ investments and other cross-cutting questions of EU law.
Highlights
On 6 October 2020, the Court of Justice (ECJ) handed down a ruling that is remarkable in legal and political terms: the Court found that two amendments to Hungary’s Law on Higher EducationMaastricht Journal of European and Comparative Law 28(5)violate EU law, including the WTO GATS Agreement
Violate EU law, including the WTO GATS Agreement. These 2017 amendments have been referred to as a ‘lex CEU’, as they were reportedly targeted at the Central European University (CEU), which has relocated most of its operations from Budapest to Vienna due to this law
The case touches upon a series of fundamental issues, such as the EU’s efforts to protect European values, democracy and the rule of law in its Member States, infringement proceedings against Member States for their failure to comply with international agreements, the applicability of the Fundamental Rights Charter in EU external relations, the tension between the ECJ and the WTO dispute settlement system, national measures enacted to ward off ‘undesirable’ investments and other cross-cutting questions of EU law
Summary
On 6 October 2020, the Court of Justice (ECJ) handed down a ruling that is remarkable in legal and political terms: the Court found that two amendments to Hungary’s Law on Higher Education. Violate EU law, including the WTO GATS Agreement. These 2017 amendments have been referred to as a ‘lex CEU’, as they were reportedly targeted at the Central European University (CEU), which has relocated most of its operations from Budapest to Vienna due to this law. The case touches upon a series of fundamental issues, such as the EU’s efforts to protect European values, democracy and the rule of law in its Member States, infringement proceedings against Member States for their failure to comply with international agreements, the applicability of the Fundamental Rights Charter in EU external relations, the tension between the ECJ and the WTO dispute settlement system, national measures enacted to ward off ‘undesirable’ investments and other cross-cutting questions of EU law
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