General Principles of the EU and a Glimpse of Solidarity in the Aftermath of Mangold and Kücükdeveci

In the Kücükdeveci judgment, the Court of Justice of the European Union confirmed the Mangold precedent and shed light on the legal effects of the general principles of the Union, which are directly applicable in dispute between private parties.

Without referring to it expressly, the Court seemed to use the notion of incidental direct effect, which scholars had coined with respect to directives. This interpretation might have a consequential impact on horizontal controversies (especially after the entry into force of the Charter of Fundamental Rights) and could perhaps bring about an expansion of the principle of solidarity in the Union. Indeed, for the first time, private citizens are not only beneficiaries of fundamental rights under EU law, but they are also responsible (jointly and severally with the States) for their protection and implementation.