On the legitimacy of Europeanising Europe's private law.

Publication: Global Jurist Topics

Publication Date: 19-DEC-02

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COPYRIGHT 2002 Berkeley Electronic Press

Abstract

Will the Europeanisation process destruct the social achievements of modern private law? Not necessarily so. The project of a European code, however, is unlikely to generate contructive responses to this query. The original German version of this contribution ("Ein europ ropaisches Zivilgesetzbuch als einzige Losung? Kooperation statt Hierarchie: Legitimationsprobleme und Argumentationsstrategien am Beispiel des Privatrechts") was first published in the "Forum Humanwissenschaften" of the daily newspaper "Frankfurter Rundschau" of Tuesday, 05-11-2002.

Europe is plagued by concerns over its capacity to solve problems and its acceptance amongst citizens--and responds to this with enormous efforts. Its reputation is evidently determined by an enormous number of greater or lesser daily affairs. Everywhere "Brussels" mixes in: it regulates the yolks of eggs, the shape of pears and bananas, the well-being of pigs.

Coping with all these tasks is an astonishing performance by the European system. But this sort of ability is not in itself enough to legitimise Europe. And, in fact, the Union cannot be reduced to its daily business. Its efforts have, as it were, become reflexive. The European Council solemnly proclaimed a Charter of Fundamental Rights at its meeting in Nice in December 2000; a project for reforming practices of European governance set in motion by Commission President Romano Prodi shortly after his taking up office led, in July 2001, to the definition of "principles of good governance" in a Commission White Paper; and a European Convention of 102 representatives of Member State governments and parliaments, including representatives of the Candidate Countries, the European Parliament and the Commission has, since March 2002, been deliberating about agreeing to a constitution.

These are truly great efforts. Will they get the better of the citizens' moods which swing between indifference and disapproval, and meet with their "intrinsically" deserved attention? The great projects...

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