Justice Contained

by Conant, Lisa

• ISBN13: 9780801439100
• ISBN10: 0801439108
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2002-09-01
• Publisher: Cornell Univ Pr

Summary

In this probing analysis of the European Union's transnational legal system, Lisa Conant explores the interaction between law and politics. In particular, she challenges the widely held view that the European Court of Justice (ECJ) has, through bold judicial activism, brought about profound policy and institutional changes within the EU's member states. She argues convincingly that this court, like its domestic counterparts, depends on the support of powerful organized interests to gain compliance with its rulings. What, Conant asks, are the policy implications of the ECJ's decisions? How are its rulings applied in practice? Drawing on the rich scholarship on the U.S. Supreme Court, Conant depicts the limits that the ECJ and other tribunals have to face. To illuminate these constraints, she traces the impact of ECJ decisions in four instances concerning market competition and national discrimination. She also proposes ways of anticipating which of this court's legal interpretations are likely to inspire major reforms. Justice Contained closes with a comparative analysis of judicial power, identifying the ECJ as an institution with greater similarities to domestic courts than to international organizations. The book advances a deeper understanding both of the court's contributions to European integration and of the political economy of litigation and reform.

Author Biography

Lisa Conant is Assistant Professor of Political Science at the University of Denver

Table of Contents

List of Figures	ix
List of Tables	xi
Preface	xiii
List of Abbreviations	xvii
Introduction: Justice Contained	1	(14)
The Variable Reach of the Law: The European Court of Justice and the Politics of Legal Integration	15	(35)
Containing Justice: Institutional Constraints on Law in the European Union	50	(45)
From Jurisprudence to Policy: The Liberalization of European Telecommunications	95	(27)
European Law and What States Made of It: Intergovernmental Reform of Electricity	122	(29)
From Law to Policy and Practice? Nationality and Access to Public-Sector Employment	151	(26)
Justice Contained and Reversed: Nationality, Territory, and Access to Social Benefits	177	(36)
The European Court of Justice and Judicial Authority: Comparisons and Conclusions	213	(30)
Index	243