National Identity in EU Law

Despite nearly sixty years of European integration, neither nations nor national loyalties have withered away. On the contrary, national identity rhetoric seems on the rise, not only in politics but also in legal discourse. Lately we have seen a rise in the number of Member States invoking their national identity in an attempt to justify a derogation from a requirement imposed on them by a Treaty article or an EU legislative act, or to legitimize a particular national reading of such an EU norm. Despite this, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) has yet to develop a coherent approach to such arguments, or express a vision of the role national identity should play in EU law.
Elke Cloots undertakes this task by providing a principled and coherent scheme for the adjudication of disputes involving claims based on the national identity of a Member State. Should arguments involving national identity be legally relevant? If yes, how should the ECJ approach such identity-related interests? Cloots crafts a normative framework to assist the ECJ in striking the right balance between European integration and respect for the identity concerns at issue.
The book combines rigorous theoretical inquiry with thorough analysis of the European Treaties and case law, with particular attention paid to litigation involving domestic measures concerning the national system of government, constitutional rights protections, and language policy. Clarifying the issues at stake and presenting a solution to these problems, this book will be an invaluable resource for the academics, lawyers, and policy makers in the field.

Dr. Elke Cloots is Senior Affiliated Researcher at the Leuven Institute for European Law. Elke obtained a PhD in law at the University of Leuven in 2013. She holds a Master's degree in law from the University of Leuven (2006) and a post-graduate degree from the University of Oxford (MJur, 2009). She lectured EU Law at the Maastricht Centre for European Law and is also an attorney at the Antwerp bar

- 1: Introduction - Part I. The ECJ's Duty to Respect National Identity - 2: A Legal Obligation to Respect National Identity - 3: The Value of Respect for National Identity - 4: Respect for National Identity and European Integration - 5: The Meaning of the Identity Clause - Part II. Methods of Adjudication - 6: National Identity and Primary EU Law: Methods of Adjudication - 7: Member State Federalism and Primary EU Law - 8: Constitutional Rights and Primary EU Law - 9: Domestic Language Norms and Primary EU Law - 10: National Identity and Secondary EU Law