THE REALITY OF EU-CONFORMITY REVIEW IN FRANCE


18 Colum. J. Eur. L. 369 (2012)

Juscelino F. Colares, Professor of Law, Case Western Reserve University School of Law.

French High Courts have embraced review of national legislation for conformity with EU  law in different stages and following distinct approaches to EU  law supremacy. This article tests whether adherence to different views on EU  law supremacy has resulted in different levels of EU  directive enforcement by the French High Courts. After introducing the complex French systems of statutory, treaty and constitutional review, this study explains how EU-conformity review emerged among these systems and provides an empirical analysis refuting the anecdotal view that different EU  supremacy theories produce substantial differences in conformity adjudication outcomes.