The Commission's 2010 Green Paper on European Contract Law: Reflections on Union Competence in Light of the Proposed Options
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Kathleen Gutman
Abstract
The purpose of this contribution is to discuss the extent of the Union's competence to adopt a comprehensive instrument of substantive contract law in light of the options set forth in the Commission's 2010 Green Paper on European contract law, with a view to exploring the limits of, and the relationship between, certain prominent Treaty provisions in the debate – namely, Articles 114, 115, 81, 169 and 352 TFEU (ex Articles 95, 94, 65, 153 and 308 EC, respectively) – and the roles played by the principles of subsidiarity and proportionality in guiding the exercise of Union competence inside, as well as outside, the EU decision-making process. Moreover, given the reference to certain American techniques in the Green Paper, this contribution seeks to facilitate discussion of the comparative dimensions of the constitutional assessment of contract law in the European Union and the United States.
Résumé
Le but de cette contribution est de discuter l'étendue de la compétence de l'Union européenne pour adopter un instrument complet de droit substantiel des contrats à la lumière des options mises en avant dans le livre vert de la Commission de 2010 sur le droit européen des contrats, avec l'idée d'explorer les limites de, et les relations entre, certaines dispositions importantes du traité en débat – ainsi les articles 114, 115, 81, 169 et 352 du Traité sur le fonctionnement de l'Union européenne (respectivement ex-articles 95, 94, 65, 153 et 308 du Traité instituant la Communauté européenne) – et les rôles joués par les principes de subsidiarité et de proportionnalité pour guider l'exercice de la compétence de l'Union à l'intérieur aussi bien qu'à l'extérieur du processus d'élaboration de ses décisions. De plus, étant donnée la référence à certaines techniques américaines dans le livre vert, cette contribution cherche à faciliter la discussion des dimensions comparatives de l'évaluation constitutionnelle du droit des contrats dans l'Union européenne et les États-Unis.
Zusammenfassung
Mit der vorliegenden Untersuchung soll der Umfang der EU-Kompetenz untersucht werden, ein breites, materiellrechtliches Vertragsrechtsregime zu verabschieden, so wie es als eine der Optionen im Grünbuch der EU Kommission von 2010 angedacht wird. Dabei sollen die Grenzen verschiedener Kompetenznormen und die Wechselwirkungen zwischen ihnen untersucht werden, namentlich der Art. 114, 115, 81, 169 und 352 AEUV (bisher Art. 95, 94, 65, 153, 308 EG), sowie die Bedeutung des Subsidiaritäts- und des Verhältnismäßigkeitsgrundsatzes in diesem Zusammenhang, und zwar im Regelsetzungsprozess und außerhalb. Da zudem gewisse “amerikanische” Regelungstechniken unverkennbar sind, wird auf Querverbindungen eingegangen, um Grundlinien eines transatlantischen Vergleichs der “konstitutionellen” Dimension des Vertragsrechts ins Spiel zu bringen.
Artikel in diesem Heft
- A Competitive Approach to EU Contract Law
- Choice, Certainty and Diversity: Why More is Less
- The Commission's 2010 Green Paper on European Contract Law: Reflections on Union Competence in Light of the Proposed Options
- European Contract Law Reform and European Consumer Law – Two Related But Distinct Regimes
- A European Civil Law – for Whom and What Should it Include? Reflections on the Scope of Application of a Future European Legal Instrument
- Is the DCFR ready to be adopted as an Optional Instrument?
- The Common Frame of Reference and the Relationship between National Law and European Law
- ‘Good-Bye Harmonisation by Directives, Hello Cross-Border only Regulation?’ – A way forward for EU Consumer Contract Law
- Policy Choices in European Consumer law: Regulation through ‘Targeted Differentiation’
- An Economic Analysis of Harmonization Regimes: Full Harmonization, Minimum Harmonization or Optional Instrument?
- Five political ideas of European contract law
- Green Paper on Policy Options for Progress Towards a European Contract Law for Consumers and Businesses What do we want?
- ‘Choice is good.’ Really?
- An Optional Instrument and Social dumping revisited
- Towards a European Contract Law through Social Dialogue
- General Conclusions
Artikel in diesem Heft
- A Competitive Approach to EU Contract Law
- Choice, Certainty and Diversity: Why More is Less
- The Commission's 2010 Green Paper on European Contract Law: Reflections on Union Competence in Light of the Proposed Options
- European Contract Law Reform and European Consumer Law – Two Related But Distinct Regimes
- A European Civil Law – for Whom and What Should it Include? Reflections on the Scope of Application of a Future European Legal Instrument
- Is the DCFR ready to be adopted as an Optional Instrument?
- The Common Frame of Reference and the Relationship between National Law and European Law
- ‘Good-Bye Harmonisation by Directives, Hello Cross-Border only Regulation?’ – A way forward for EU Consumer Contract Law
- Policy Choices in European Consumer law: Regulation through ‘Targeted Differentiation’
- An Economic Analysis of Harmonization Regimes: Full Harmonization, Minimum Harmonization or Optional Instrument?
- Five political ideas of European contract law
- Green Paper on Policy Options for Progress Towards a European Contract Law for Consumers and Businesses What do we want?
- ‘Choice is good.’ Really?
- An Optional Instrument and Social dumping revisited
- Towards a European Contract Law through Social Dialogue
- General Conclusions
