Brunner case brief (Maastricht)

Brunner (Maastricht)

-Article 38 of German Basic Right – individually assertable right to elect
Bundestag, and through this there’s the principle that all state power emanates from the people Brunner’s
general claim (principles - next implicit step is political union and that by its very essence the people are
losing their right to democratic participation)

-Sees EU as a Comm. of States hasn’t submerged all of the states (still independent with own legislatures)
EU can’t expand its powers, if it tries to it has to go back and be approved by the national legislatures
(and as such people would have to approve it)
-legislature has agreed to send the competencies of Europe already and they were limited and clearly
defined

-German institutions have a duty to – there must be constant interaction with the people nat’ parliaments
should be involved when legislation proposed
loose network of cooperation idea

-TEU has clearly defined what has been transferred to the center German court will watch what
it does, if it goes beyond the bounds of what has been transferred, it will be ultra vires and it won’t be
binding in Germany