Abstract: Although a substantial part of the body of laws of an EU Member State is founded upon European Union law and norms, the number of preliminary questions emanating from courts in the Czech Republic appears to be disproportionately low compared to other similar EU Member States. The aim of this article is to analyse and outline possible reasons for the lack of preliminary questions coming from the Czech Republic. In her analysis, the author identifies three possible factors underpinning the issue. These factors include attitudes towards the EU and a general lack of understanding of the relevance of EU laws and norms; the role of preliminary rulings; and the perception and recognition of courts. An integral part of this analysis is a critical commentary on the shifts in how courts and tribunals are perceived within the meaning of Art. 267 TFEU. Lastly, the author offers guidance to fellow legal professionals and academics for interpreting EU norms. PubDate: Tue, 04 Jun 2024 00:00:00 GMT
Abstract: This article presents a contemporary model of applying interim measures by the Court of Justice of the European Union, drawing on an increasingly rich body of case law in Polish cases. The disputes that the European Commission has engaged in with the Polish government, along with the non-standard obstruction in compliance with EU law, have become the basis for a new approach to this ancillary procedure offered by the Rules of Procedure of the Court. The article focuses on two sensitive areas where judicial intervention has proved necessary, the protection of the natural environment and ensuring the rule of law, especially in the operation of the national judiciary. There is no doubt that this body of work constitutes a significant contribution to the overall development of EU law, as it has led to the adoption of a completely new interpretation of Article 279 TFEU. According to the latest case law, the possibility of imposing financial penalties on member states is not limited to cases provided for in Article 260 TFEU, that is, non-compliance with a judgment finding a breach of EU law; these penalties can also be imposed in cases of non-compliance with the Court’s interim orders. PubDate: Fri, 03 May 2024 00:00:00 GMT
Abstract: The article discusses a possibility and circumstances of conducting a remote hearing in the Polish civil procedure. Especially, the authors describe and analyse the legal provisions applicable prior, during and after Covid-19 as well as their impact on the process of informatization of the civil proceedings in Poland with the main focus on remote hearings that were not - generally, possible before Covid-19. The article also takes a closer look at the possibility to participate in a trial outside the seat of the court and the principle of openness of the proceedings. PubDate: Wed, 10 Apr 2024 00:00:00 GMT
Abstract: The article first updates the concept and typology of gold-plating of EU law. In this respect, it makes the distinction between various types of gold-plating of EU law and submits that it should now be understood as any national transposition of EU directives as well as any national normative implementation of any other EU legal acts which exceeds the minimum regulatory requirements of the transposed or implemented EU act and which remains within EU legality. Secondly, it provides an updated view of the use of gold-plating in the Czech Republic. It does so by comparing the current gold-plating situation in this Member State with that of a decade ago. This comparison has revealed a predominantly positive development in this area, namely the almost total eradication of inadvertent gold-plating and the consolidation of deliberate justified gold-plating of EU law in Czech legislative practice. Still, the article pleads for some further refinements in the area concerned. PubDate: Wed, 10 Apr 2024 00:00:00 GMT
Abstract: In this paper, we focus on two conceptual problems associated with the EU Whistleblower Directive and point out issues that may undermine or even frustrate the successful implementation of the Directive in a national context. While fully acknowledging strong arguments for, and undeniable benefits of, speaking in favour of EU whistleblower protection, it has to be noted that a specific form of forced gold-plating calling for the extension of the material scope of protection may complicate the interpretation of the autonomous part of legislation and lead to legal insecurity. Moreover, new elements of whistleblower protection as introduced by the Directive diverge from the case law of the European Court of Human Rights. The introduction of higher standards of protection in favour of whistleblowers does not raise problems in relations between the state and the individual, but some EU rules may cause problems in horizontal relations between private individuals, since fair balancing of interests as required by Strasbourg jurisprudence may be not always guaranteed. PubDate: Sat, 02 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMT
Abstract: Civil procedural law had to react quickly to the Covid-19 pandemic to ensure that litigants had access to the court system despite the closure of court buildings. In Hungary, e-trials were made possible by special government decisions, which were interpreted by the Supreme Court (Kúria) to help lower courts to develop uniform case law. As a result of the Digital Courts Programme launched in 2018, the computerisation of courts and judges was in a good state at the time of the outbreak, which helped greatly to address the situation. The paper examines changes in Hungarian civil procedure law during the first three waves of the pandemic in a chronological manner. In its conclusions, it takes stock of the changes that can enhance access to the justice system and legal entities, even after the epidemic. PubDate: Sat, 02 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMT
Abstract: The paper aims to highlight the decisive role of supranational and national courts in the recognition of a fundamental right to a healthy environment and in widening the scope of its protection. It analyses, in a critical sense, the doctrine that defines this trend as jurisprudential activism and that raises concerns regarding the principle of separation of powers. PubDate: Sat, 02 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMT
Abstract: It is widely agreed that the global economy has entered a phase of heightened uncertainty. Since all downturns and slowdowns involve low aggregate demand, the authorities typically step in by increasing their own spending to protect businesses and jobs. During the Covid pandemic the European Union has witnessed an unprecedented level of State aid measures, under the hastily adopted dedicated temporary framework. Temporary rules have also been adopted to facilitate State aid supporting companies affected by the Russian invasion of Ukraine, which are still in force today (March 2023). The common pattern of crisis responses in turn allows for a more general, non-event-specific, assessment of State aid measures taken to reduce economic disturbances.Sufficient time has now passed for an attempt to take stock of these efforts. This paper therefore seeks to assess State aid measures designed to remedy serious economic disruptions, identify their weak points and recommend improvements. The analysis, preceded by a succinct description of the European Union’s State aid toolbox for crisis aid, will focus on the previously identified potential problem areas: How to determine whether an aid measure is indeed capable, in itself, of remedying the serious disturbance in the economy, especially when it is granted to a single undertaking, and how to ensure the effectiveness of State aid control. The paper will conclude with a set of recommendations. PubDate: Thu, 22 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT
Abstract: This article deals with the emerging concept of “sustainability”, that, according to the empirical research presented here, is mentioned in the text of 67 constitutions, very often in relation to the environment or with the rights of future generations. As the vast majority of those references consist in very general substantive provisions, needing legislative or judicial implementation, the article deals with the challenges brought by “aspirational constitutions” and with the role of the courts in their enforcement. Finally, I maintains that, in order to achieve the effectiveness, constitutions should include procedural provisions aimed at integrating sustainability instances (throughout specialized bodies) into the legislative process. PubDate: Thu, 22 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT
Abstract: The objective of this article is to look for the answer to the question of whether the applicable public law regulations contain adequate mechanisms enabling the realisation of the interests of local communities in the transboundary dimension. The background to the considerations will be an analysis of the spatial planning and environmental impact assessment procedures in connection with the planned expansion of the area of the open cast Turów lignite mine. PubDate: Thu, 22 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT
Abstract: Many households in Poland are currently experiencing a situation in which they must choose between drastic energy savings, resulting in a noticeable lack of heat comfort, and spending on energy costs at the expense of other basic needs, such as food or medications. This phenomenon has negative consequences, from a deteriorating state of health, especially among children and older people, to ‘saving themselves’ by burning coal dust or waste, which, in turn, increases emissions and leads to pollution of the air. It also causes energy exclusion in many cases, which can cause breaches of human dignity. The question therefore arises: how does social welfare deal with energy exclusion on legal and social grounds with regard to satisfying the energy needs of citizens and what are the role and tasks of social welfare in conditions of an energy crisis' The answers to these questions are accompanied by an analysis of the concepts of energy poverty and energy exclusion, as well as a discussion and assessment of selected forms of social welfare in counteracting the energy exclusion of citizens. PubDate: Thu, 22 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT
Abstract: The global and European energy markets are changing profoundly before our eyes. The European Union (EU), wishing to achieve energy independence soon, including independence from fuel supplies, is turning its attention to renewable energy sources. It is no longer only important to achieve a high level of use of renewable energy sources, but also to maintain local energy security by supporting local energy production from renewable sources at the level of individual EU Member States. This is taking place in very different directions and through various support tools.The sharing energy phenomenon also finds support today on the regulatory side in EU law. Amongst others, there is Directive (EU) 2018/2001 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 December 2018 on the promotion of the use of energy from renewable sources and Directive (EU) 2019/944 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 5 June 2019 on common rules for the internal market in electricity, which provide for forms of decentralised energy market and certain forms of community energy in the form of electricity prosumers and various types of energy communities. The basic research question addressed in this study is - how does the sharing energy phenomenon fit into the broader sharing economy phenomenon today' It also asks in what way does EU regulation currently support the development of the sharing energy phenomenon' The research area in this paper is narrowed down to EU law also includes references to Polish law. PubDate: Thu, 22 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT
Abstract: The COVID-19 outbreak forced Slovakia to quickly adapt its bankruptcy legislation and introduce temporary measures to alleviate the pandemic’s economic impact. However, the uptake of these pandemic-specific insolvency provisions remained modest, possibly due to extensive government financial support. As the pandemic wanes, future economic challenges, such as rising inflation and interest rates, may test the durability and effectiveness of these legislative adjustments. This period of regulatory adjustment underscores a broader shift in insolvency laws, signalling a shift towards prioritising business continuity and value in the face of economic crises. PubDate: Mon, 12 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT
Abstract: The article outlines improvements in environment and climate protection in constitutional law and practice all over the world, examining constitutional texts, case law and constitution-like legislation. A legal standing of individuals to defend the environment is increasingly added to programmatic provisions addressed to public authorities. In some cases Nature is granted legal personality. The latter innovation connects well to traditions established in the global South, where it was introduced first, but not so to legal systems of the Occident, where it was recently introduced for the first time. In strictly legal terms the effects of this innovation can also be achieved by classical legal instruments, while its metaphoric dimension promises a change in people’s attitudes towards nature. A second innovation concerns the shift from an anthropocentric to a bio-cultural or ecocentric approach. This would render constitutional law on the environment fully effective and convey a substantive meaning to a personalised concept of Nature. Such a development is, however, uncertain. The rights of Nature risk remaining trapped in anthropocentric categories of subject and object of law when transposed to Occidental legal thinking and practice. To avoid such inadvertent contradictions, the article pleads for reconciling both approaches by seeking more equilibrium in the Human-Nature relationship. PubDate: Sat, 10 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT
Abstract: The article discusses the changes in court jurisprudence regarding the issuance of decisions on development conditions in locating photovoltaic installations. The second important subject of the article is legal changes related to the location of these installations based on the development plan. In both cases, the changes aimed to facilitate the construction of photovoltaic installations. This is a very good direction because it is necessary to develop non-emission energy sources. In addition, the development of photovoltaic installations can be combined with further agricultural use of land. PubDate: Sat, 10 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT
Abstract: While there is scientific consensus on the causes and consequences of climate change, also reflected in international agreements and EU norms obliging states to reduce GHG emissions, domestic legislation has been slow or imperfect in implementing reduction duties. Although climate litigation is not a new phenomenon, a specific strand of climate litigation is now gaining impetus owing to the success garnered in Urgenda and the Klimabeschluss: litigation focusing on states’ omitting to lawfully regulate emission targets. This paper presents the context of novel climate litigation in the face of Russian aggression and the ensuing disincentives to promote ambitious reduction goals, proceeding to describe the arguments and findings in the two landmark cases and their effects on future climate litigation as seen in the example of the climate petition pending before the Hungarian Constitutional Court. PubDate: Sat, 10 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT
Abstract: The European Hydrogen Bank is a new platform intended to connect users with producers and stimulate the private sector’s interest in new, environmentally friendly, hydrogen technologies. One of the purposes of this new institution is to reduce the cost difference between hydrogen produced in accordance with the guidelines of the delegated acts of the REDII (renewable hydrogen) and hydrogen produced from fossil fuels, and to increase the predictability of producer incomes. The institution is also designed to play a coordinating role, for instance, by collecting information on demand and supply, providing transparent information on prices and developing hydrogen market price benchmarks.The bank is expected to become operational by the end of 2023. Particular emphasis is put on the financing of projects that contribute to the objectives of the European Green Deal, such as decarbonisation of industrial sectors that are difficult to electrify. The EHB is a key tool for driving the development and deployment of hydrogen technologies from renewable sources across the European Union. By providing financial support for hydrogen projects and supporting cooperation between EU Member States, the EHB can streamline the transition to a green hydrogen economy and contribute to Europe’s climate and energy objectives. PubDate: Sun, 04 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT
Abstract: This study attempts to analyse and provide details about the phenomenon of energy poverty in Poland and Polish, especially by characterizing the issue from a factual and legal point of view. Therefore, it focuses both on the meaning of energy poverty existing in research and its reflection in the legal system by linking it with the concepts of energy safety and the right to energy and power resources. The suitability of the normative separation of the phenomenon of energy poverty shows its interrelation with the public interest, which makes it the responsibility of administrative authorities, especially the self-government in communes, to counteract the issue. It also determines a new role of communes and extends the scope of tools introduced to rectify the situation of residents suffering from energy poverty. At the same time, it also burdens communes with new responsibilities (i.e., providing financial support to residents and balancing the need to combat energy poverty with other values and obligations, such as environmental protection). It also aggravates the existing multi-faceted nature of energy poverty and its effects. PubDate: Sun, 04 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT
Abstract: Public authorities should pursue a policy ensuring ecological security for present and future generations. Furthermore, the protection of the environment is the responsibility of public authorities. Environmental protection means all activities and instruments counteracting the deterioration of the environment; it is particularly important in this respect to counteract the negative effects of environmental degradation on health. Under Polish law, climate protection law is one of the most intensively developing areas of public law. This is because the responsibility for environmental protection should lie with the state, as it has all the tools to achieve this goal. In Poland, climate protection issues have found their rightful place in public discourse. Stopping climate change is now covered by a multi-level public policy, in which the leading role is assigned to administrative law regulations. The development of electric vehicles has a significant impact on the decarbonisation of transport, which mainly relies on diesel and petrol. The popularisation of green vehicles requires strategic management of demand for petroleum-based fuels, which is undoubtedly a public task. PubDate: Sun, 04 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT
Abstract: The subject of this article is the issues related to the obligation to implement into Polish law the provisions of the European Union (EU) law concerning citizen energy communities (CECs) and renewable energy communities (RECs), contained in Directives 2019/944 and 2018/2001. The method of implementing the provisions of EU law into Polish law is to be based on the establishment of a single set of regulations, as provided for in the draft Act amending the Energy Law and certain other Acts of 26 January 2023 (draft No. UC74 developed by the Ministry of Climate and Environment). It is to include regulations relating to both types of communities (CECs and RECs), but to use only one name – CECs. The article presents and critically analyses the proposed regulations and the adopted method of their allocation in the acts of Polish law. PubDate: Sun, 04 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT
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