European Union Law and Governance

• explain the functioning of the EU’s institutional arrangements , in terms of their institutional balance and of their decision-making procedures from agenda-setting to implementation
• formulate informed and reasoned evaluations  of the functioning of European governance beyond the basic institutional framework,  accounting, for instance, for the role of comitology, agencies, social dialogue and new modes of governance
• account for the decentralised nature of administration of European policies
• present a critical account of the particular role, potential and limits of law and of formal rules in European governance, compared to other policy tools and informal rules and practices
• critically assess European governance in terms of accountability, legitimacy and democracy
• identify governance issues that transcend the particular context of the EU and that challenge the governance of  modern democracies more generally.
• demonstrate knowledge of processes and questions that transcend the particular case of the EU that  relate more broadly to how modern democracies are governed i.e. the increased importance of ‘governance beyond the nation-state’ and of multi-level governance, the relation between the public administration and interest groups/civil society, the relation between government and governed, the role of scientific knowledge in public governance; questions of accountability, legitimacy and democracy that are raised in this context

10 x 2 hour seminars, and 4 lectures

 Seminars require significant preparation and participation by the students. Students are expected to have undertaken in advance the readings and reflections specific to each seminar, and be prepared to comment critically on the relevant material. They will be required to take into account different disciplinary approaches to the topic. They may also be required to make presentations, which they will be notified about in advance.

Skills that will be practised and developed

 Intellectual Skills:

• demonstrate an  ability to distinguish between factual knowledge and methodological and theoretical approaches to an analysis of  the facts
• demonstrate an ability to address the object of study from different disciplinary angles
• display analytical assessment and critical evaluation

 Discipline Specific (including practical) Skills:

• work with legal sources related to the EU
• use concepts and tools provided by political science

Transferable Skills:

• develop a critical and detailed awareness of potential and difficulties of interdisciplinary studies
• display a familiarity with debating an object of study from different disciplinary angles
• deploy research skills in the finding and use of both academic and legal sources
• deploy research skills in the application of theoretical and methodological frameworks provided by political science and combining them with legal analysis
• demonstrate advanced writing skills: writing an academically researched essay relying on both theory and empirical data
• display presentation and debating skills:  being able to prepare oral presentations and engage in informed debates within an interdisciplinary context
• place facts and detail in a broader context
• combine theoretical frameworks (such as provided by legal and political theory) with empirical knowledge

 The module will cover the following topics:

 The EU institutions in an enlarged European Union and post Lisbon Treaty.

1. Interdisciplinarity and the governance perspective on EU studies, comparing the different perspectives from which lawyers and political scientists approach the EU. 
2. Democracy in the European Union
3. The role of civil society and the regulation of interest group participation
4. Better regulation and the role of scientific expertise
5. The governance of judicial enforcement I: Enforcing EU law from below, in national courts.
6. The governance of judicial enforcement II: The Commission’s role in enforcing EU law from above
7. Delegated regulation and comitology
8. Governance through European agencies
9. European governance and industrial relations

The reading consists in journal articles and book chapters that will be indicated for each seminar.  Reading material will rely on both legal and political science literature.  Important journals in the field are, for instance, the Journal of Common Market Studies, European Law Journal, European Law Review, Journal of European Integration, Journal of

European Public Policy, European Union Politics.