Rights and Remedies in Implementation of EU Policies by Multi-Jurisdictional Networks

Abstract:

De-central implementation of EU policies is increasingly undertaken by administrative networks linking Member States and EU bodies. Such joint implementation procedures are designed primarily to allow for effective gathering and sharing of information across jurisdictional borders but their procedural design is not without consequences for constitutional values, the protection of rights of individuals and a workable system of remedies. This article identifies such consequences and challenges of network administration for constitutional rights and principles. It then explores some possible approaches for the structural, organizational and procedural design of de-central implementation of EU policies through executive networks.

De-central but integrated implementation of EU law and policy has become the norm in most EU policy areas. Member States and EU bodies have established networks of joint gathering, use and exchange of information providing the basis of decision-making procedures in many policy areas. This article, first, looks at the origin and the growth of the phenomenon as well as its sometimes unintended consequences for individuals. The latter are not only the criteria for legality. More actively, they also require that any specific design of the system of implementation of EU policies further their realization. In line with these considerations, the second part of this article has the goal of discussing various possible remedies capable of ensuring the protection of individual rights and constitutional principles against the background of multi-jurisdictional, integrated implementation of EU law.