Theoretical perspectives on EU constitutional law

Jan Komárek

Chapter 2 in Research Handbook on European Constitutional Law, 2026, pp 19-42 from Edward Elgar Publishing

Abstract: This chapter discusses the development of EU constitutional theory. It traces its origins back to the establishment of the European University Institute in 1976 and the transatlantic intellectual exchange that took place during the Integration Through Law project. Just as there was only ‘constitutional law without politics’ prior to this project, there was also no constitutional theory. This assertion is rooted in an understanding of theory as an endeavour that strives to comprehend rather than construct and interpret EU constitutional law and its foundations, in contrast to the approach of many lawyer-diplomats from the inception of European integration. Constitutional theories of the EU and its legal order abounded in the 1990s when the EU served as a template for similar projects that aimed to constitutionalise normative orders beyond the state. The EU continues to be the main source of such theorising, albeit in a much more critical way that takes into account its inherent functionalism, political economy, and underlying cultural structures.

Keywords: EU constitutional theory; Integration through Law; Joseph Weiler; Maastricht moment; Critical constitutional theory of integration; Constitutionalism beyond the state (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026
ISBN: 9781802207866
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