On the Nature of the European Union Law Right

Abstract

European Union law without further ado recognizes classical subjective rights. These sorts of rights often originate in national law and are characterized by the way they give the right holder a monopolistic position or at least very squarely place the legal ability to decide and dispose of, e.g., an object with the right-owner. The most important examples are property rights, including intellectual property rights, and the rights to one’s own personal integrity. With respect to property rights, the individual right holder will retain his right until it is eventually transferred—normally voluntarily. Some subjective rights, such as those to personal integrity, e.g. life and health, are not even alienable. Of interest with respect to classical subjective rights, is how they originate in national law and how they may differ between national legal orders. Union law must, on the one hand, operate with an autonomous concept of, e.g., a ‘property right’, yet on the other hand, it does generally not itself provide any classic property rights, such as to ownership of land. This is similar to how rights function under the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, in line with which the Charter will often have to be interpreted, cf., Article 52(3) of the Charter.