KAFP 4015 - Advanced EU law – A Europe of Freedoms and Rights

This course offers an advanced exploration of EU law through the figure of the individual within the EU legal order. It begins with a short reminder of the foundations of EU law, the role of individuals, and the protection of fundamental rights. It then turns to the internal market: after revisiting its legal techniques through the free movement of goods, the course focuses on the other fundamental freedoms and on the statuses they create, especially for workers, self-employed persons and service providers. The course then examines EU citizenship before moving to the Area of Freedom, Security and Justice, with particular attention to asylum and migration. More broadly, it highlights how legal developments both shape and are shaped by the lived realities of individuals across Europe.

Basic knowledge of EU institutional law is expected: the history of European integration, the EU institutional structure, the main principles of the EU legal order (such as primacy and direct effect), and the nature and exercise of EU competences.

The course is primarily lecture-based. Each session combines the presentation of legal frameworks with the close discussion of key cases and selected legal materials, using concrete examples and excerpts from CJEU case law to show how the Court constructs its reasoning.

The course will be assessed through a mid-term exam (40%) and a final exam (60%). Assessment will draw on two types of exercises: a guided commentary on a CJEU judgment and a practical case. Methodological guidance and model exams will be provided before each exam.

Students are expected to:

• attend all sessions;
• complete 2-3 required readings before each class (these may include articles of the treaties, landmark CJEU rulings, or legislative materials);
• actively engage in class discussions.