'A 'Margin of Appreciation' in the internal market: lessons from the European Court of Human Rights'

Sweeney, James A.

'A 'Margin of Appreciation' in the internal market: lessons from the European Court of Human Rights'

Sweeney, James A.

Authors

James A. Sweeney

Abstract

This article charts the interplay between universality and particularism in the approach of the European Court of Justice to national restrictions upon the four freedoms. Comparisons are made with the jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Rights. It is shown that both courts allow a national 'margin of appreciation' within which overlapping European and local public interests can be balanced. The article draws inspiration from research into the impact of the margin of appreciation upon the universality of human rights in order to understand the potential of the doctrine for the enlarged European Union. The doctrine is placed within a normative framework based upon the European Union as an 'essentially contested' project. The use of the doctrine by the European Court of Justice is analysed then in the light of this framework, with particular emphasis placed upon the existence of outer limits to the doctrine, and the factors that guide its width.

Citation

Sweeney, J. A. (2007). 'A 'Margin of Appreciation' in the internal market: lessons from the European Court of Human Rights'. Legal issues of European integration, 34(1), 27-52

Journal Article Type	Article
Publication Date	Jan 1, 2007
Deposit Date	Mar 27, 2008
Publicly Available Date	Oct 14, 2016
Journal	Legal Issues of Economic Integration
Print ISSN	0377-0915
Electronic ISSN	0377-0915
Publisher	Kluwer Law International
Peer Reviewed	Peer Reviewed
Volume	34
Issue	1
Pages	27-52
Keywords	Margin of appreciation, Cultural relativism, Free movement, EC law.
Publisher URL	http://www.kluwerlawonline.com/productinfo.php?pubcode=LEIE