Reflections on the Institutional Balance, the Community Method and the Interplay between Jurisdictions after Lisbon

Summary:

This article analyses the institutional balance of the EU after the entering into force of the Treaty of Lisbon and identifies some of the grey areas that question the former concept.

The article argues that for maintaining the Union’s institutional balance the Community method plays a fundamental role; yet, alternative solutions, such as the ‘Union method’, are crucial where the Community method reaches its limits. Lastly, this article discusses the sensitive interplay between national constitutional courts and the Court of Justice in Luxembourg, and we plead in favour of a true dialogue among the various courts as it would be beneficial for creating a coherent and pluralistic European Union (EU) legal order.