Spring Term / AY 2024-25

Master’s level course

Mandatory-Elective for HR LL.M, HR MA (LEGS), Mundus MAPP (DPP)

2 US credit / 4 ECTS credits

Pre-requisites: LEGS students must have taken and passed Introduction to European Union Law. Mundus MAPP students must have taken and passed European Integration and EU Governance (DPP) OR Introduction to European Union Law (LEGS). Students who already have a good foundational knowledge in EU law, European integration, and EU governance and policy, and are sufficiently familiar with its legal aspects, may request an exception from these introductory courses. This request must be made at the start of the academic year, before the end of the Fall term registration period. It should be addressed to the course’ instructor, copying the relevant department coordinator and programme director.

E-learning site: https://ceulearning.ceu.edu/course/view.php?id=15855

Classroom: QS C201, except Thursday 15 May

Office hours and contact information for consultation: Tues 14.00-17.00, Thursday 14.00-17.00 or arranged by e-mail.

Course introduction

Fundamental/human rights are increasingly relevant in European Union (EU) law, policymaking and implementation. Anyone working or doing research in this field should therefore understand the rights framework within which those operating in, or engaging with, the EU, function. They should also be able to identify and assess the potential human rights’ impact of the legal and policy initiatives of EU institutions and bodies, EU members states, and other public or private actors which are, one way or another, bound by EU norms on fundamental/human rights. To that effect, this course seeks to provide students with foundational knowledge in EU human rights law and policy, whilst fostering relevant analytical and practical skills.

After a critical historical overview, the course examines the various sources of EU fundamental/human rights norms and the legal and policy instruments which are used to ensure their protection and promotion, across various EU policy settings, in both internal and external affairs. It the turns to actors and mechanisms involved, stressing the social and institutional dynamics at play in the complex, multileveled, and overlapping European human rights regimes.

The course relies on academic scholarships, legal and policy documents, and news sources. The materials and discussions focus on legal perspectives, with a preference for law-in-context approaches, but the course also integrates works from other disciplines, in particular when looking at the external policy dimension, and reflects on the value of interdisciplinary exchange in other to understand the dynamics of human rights protection and promotion in the EU and beyond, and to be in a better position to support improvement. Each class explores features of the EU system of protection of fundamental/human rights, and links them to specific policy areas in which they have acquired a particular relevance. The course includes mini-simulation exercises and a study visit to the EU Fundamental Rights Agency (based in Vienna).