National Constitutional Courts’ Review of European Law and its Democratic Legitimacy

Abstract

Abstract Chapter 3 analyses the democratic legitimacy of the national constitutional courts’ review of European law, building on Chapter 2. The national constitutional courts’ review of European law also raises a democratic concern because it subjects political decision-making to constitutional constraints. The chapter discusses this problem on the basis of the national constitutional courts’ EU-related case law as well as the specific features of the EU context. The chapter’s main argument is that the national constitutional courts’ review of European law could be considered justified, where it ensures better consideration of the constitutional issues raised by European integration compared to where this is left to political institutions. Yet, assessing this justification requires a comparative institutional assessment. The subsequent chapters offer such an assessment in a qualitative case study of the German Federal Constitutional Court (GFCC).