THE NATURE AND EFFECT OF EU LAW - The effects of EU law in the national legal systems - Direct effect

7 important questions on THE NATURE AND EFFECT OF EU LAW - The effects of EU law in the national legal systems - Direct effect

What does direct effect mean?

It means that an EU provision becomes immediate source of law for national court or administrator, who are bound to recognize and enforce it. Implementation isn't necessary for application within national legal system.

What did the court say in Van Gend and Loos with respect to art. 12 EEC?

The wording of art. 12 EEC has a clear and unconditional prohibition, which isn't a positive but a negative obligation. This obligation isn't qualified by any reservation on part of states. The nature of this prohibition makes it ideally adapted to procure direct effects in legal relationship between MS and subjects.
Implementation of art. 12 EEC doesn't require any legislative intervention. Fact is that under this article MS are made subject to negative obligations doesn't imply that their nationals cannot benefit from this obligation.

What where the conditions created in Van Gend and Loos?

In this arrest the Court created 3 conditions for a provision to produce direct effects:
  1. clear;
  2. unconditional (not allowing any reservations);
  3. Not dependent on any subsequent further implementation measures to be adopted by MS or community.

These conditions changed over times and now a provision of a directive is directly effective if it's:
  1. unconditional;
  2. sufficiently precise;
  3. The MS has failed to implement directive by end of period prescribed or failed to implement directive correctly.

Most of the time, if a provision tells a MS to act, the provision will have direct effect.
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How does the direct effect come in action?

Directly effected provisions may function in a number of ways: provision may create a new rule which didn't exist in national law or (with principle of primacy) may exclude application of an existing but contrary national rule. Direct effect is tested on a single provision, so a whole Treaty can lack direct effect except for one article or part of it.
This means that provision that don't grant an individual subjective rights can be directly effective. Granting some individual rights isn't a condition for direct effect.

How does direct effect work for Treaty provisions?

Treaty provisions with direct effect can be invoked in whatever type of legal relationship; vertical, reverse vertical or horizontal.
the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights is part of primary law. Art. 6(1) states Charter has the same legal value as the Treaties. The Charter can be directly effective in sense of invoking and direct application against Union institutions and MS when implementing EU law (art. 51(1) Charter). Charter has vertical direct effect.

How does direct effect work for regulations?

Direct effect of regulations is generally presumed. In rare cases it's not directly effective. Regulations are applicable and directly effective in whatever type of legal relationship: vertical or horizontal.

How does direct effect work with decisions?


There are two kinds of decisions (art. 288 TFEU): addressed and unaddressed. Addressed decisions have direct effect if addressed to MS. Provision has to be sufficiently clear, precise and unconditional. Direct effect of decision is limited to vertical situations.

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