Another View on European Integration: Distributive Stakes in the Harmonization of European Law

Progressive Lawyering, Globalization and Markets: Rethinking Ideology and Strategy, pp. 233-259, 2007

American University, WCL Research Paper No. 08-28

33 Pages Posted: 5 Feb 2008

See all articles by Fernanda Nicola

Fernanda Nicola

American University - Washington College of Law

Abstract

There are two progressive scholarly perspectives on the harmonization of law within the European Union (EU). Both focus on the constitutionality of European institutions and the legitimacy of their decision-making processes. The constitutional asymmetry criticizes the EU institutional arrangement for prioritizing market objectives over social policy goals. The proceduralization perspective, on the other hand, celebrates Europeanization for enabling transnational deliberative democratic projects. Neither perspective, however, addresses the distributive consequences of the harmonization of European law and the indeterminacy of its socio-economic impact in local contexts. Through the analysis of several European Court of Justice (ECJ) judgments, this essay argues that jurists need a third progressive approach - one that attempts to take into account both the uneven distributive impact of harmonization in a multi-level system of governance and the distributive consequences of harmonized private law rules.

Keywords: Eurpoean Union, harmonization

Suggested Citation

Nicola, Fernanda Giorgia, Another View on European Integration: Distributive Stakes in the Harmonization of European Law. Progressive Lawyering, Globalization and Markets: Rethinking Ideology and Strategy, pp. 233-259, 2007, American University, WCL Research Paper No. 08-28, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1090244

Fernanda Giorgia Nicola (Contact Author)

American University - Washington College of Law ( email )

4300 Nebraska Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20016
United States

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