The Interaction Between the Rule of Law, Fundamental Rights, and the Supremacy of EU Law

Abstract

The rule of law constitutes the cornerstone of the European legal order and, consequently, the primary pillar of its constitutionality. Paired with the principle of the supremacy of EU law, affirmed by the Court of Justice of the European Communities in some of its earliest and most significant decisions, it facilitated the development of the European Union both in the legal-constitutional and political senses. The introduction of fundamental rights as a core value completed the legal-constitutional framework, enabling individual rights and freedoms to flourish. As these principles and values are based on moral grounds, cultural and historical forces, and traditions that led to their conceptualisation, the debate on their implementation, reinforcement, crisis, or even backsliding has always been active. The subject of this paper is the key internal and external aspects that influence the way the rule of law, fundamental rights, and the supremacy of EU law are understood, emphasising that their internal and external components are equally important for their universal implementation as legal and political concepts.