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European Auditors Call for Strengthening of Legal Requirements for National Budgetary Frameworks
December 10, 2019
A recent report of the European Court of Auditors concludes that the European Union needs to strengthen and better monitor its legal requirements for national budgetary frameworks, highlighting the inconsistency between the European Commission's and independent bodies' assessment of member states' compliance with EU fiscal rules.
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ECJ Upholds EU Gun Control Directives
December 10, 2019
In the face of a challenge by the Czech Republic (supported by Poland and Hungary), the Court of Justice of the European Union ("ECJ") has upheld European Union gun control regulations, adopted in 2017, which regulate the acquisition and possession of firearms.
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EU Court Applies Labeling Regulations to Products Produced in Territories Occupied by the State of Israel
December 10, 2019
In a November judgment, the Grand Chamber of the Court of Justice of the European Union ruled that foodstuffs originating in territories occupied by the State of Israel must bear the indication of the specific territory of their origin, including a Jewish settlement, citing an EU regulation requiring the provision of product information that enables consumers "to make informed choices, with regard not only to health, economic, environmental and social considerations, but also to ethical considerations and considerations relating to the observance of international law."
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Venice Commission and ODIHR Lower "Imminent Violence" Standard for Restrictions on Freedom of Assembly to "Real Risk of Violence" Standard
December 10, 2019
Lowering the standard contained in Paragraph 139 of its 2019 Guidelines on Freedom of Peaceful Assembly recommending that proscribing freedom of assembly on public order grounds must involve "an interest in preventing imminent violent conduct or other conduct creating serious infringements of public order" (a standard comparable to U.S. First Amendment jurisprudence), in Paragraph 78 of a recent joint Opinion, the European Commission for Democracy through Law (the "Venice Commission") and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights ("OSCE/ODIHR") opine that "restrictions on content of public assemblies should only occur if there is a real risk of violence or an incitement to violence or other serious threat to public order which cannot be otherwise mitigated and prevented."
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Venice Commission Explains Standard for Ukraine's Adoption of State Language Laws
December 10, 2019
In a recent Opinion, the European Commission for Democracy through Law (the "Venice Commission") explains that, in adopting State Language laws impacting the linguistic rights of minorities, Ukraine must comply with applicable international instruments and, to avoid discrimination, must base any distinction among languages on an objective and reasonable justification that pursues a legitimate aim, is proportional to the aim sought to be realized, and falls within a margin of appreciation that will vary according to the national circumstances, the subject matter, and the background.
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