The existence of a structured enforcement system is an inherent feature of national legal orders and one of the core elements of State sovereignty. The very limited power to issue sanctions has often been deemed a gap in the EC legal order. Over the years, the situation has progressively changed. The Union’s institutional setting is growing in complexity and a variety of agencies has been or is expected to be endowed with law enforcement responsibilities. In addition, the so-called competence creep has led the EU to play an increasingly prominent role in several areas of EU law enforcement, including the issuing of sanctions. This book examines these developments, focusing on both the general features of the EU legal order and the analysis of key-substantive areas, such as banking and monetary union, environmental law, and data protection. The work thus presents a general framework for understanding EU sanctioning based on structural features and general legal principles. Part I develops an analytical framework, tracking the most significant evolutive patterns of EU sanctioning powers. Part II adopts a more practical approach focusing on specific issues and policy areas. The book bridges a gap in existing literature and sheds new light on the relationship between the exercise of jus puniendi and the evolution of EU integration.

The EU Law Enforcement Directive (LED): A Commentary provides an article-by-article commentary on the Law Enforcement Directive (Directive 2016/680) edited by two leading scholars in the field of personal data protection.

This book explores how the EU’s enforcement of competition law has moved from centralisation to decentralisation over the years, with the National Competition Authorities embracing more enforcement powers. At the same time, harmonisation has been employed as a solution to ensure that the enforcement of EU competition rules is not weakened and the internal market remains a level playing field. While employing a comparative law argument, the book, accordingly, analyses the need for harmonisation throughout the different stages of development of the EU’s competition law enforcement (save Merger control and State Aid), the underlying rationale, and the extent to which comparative studies have been undertaken to facilitate the harmonisation process from an historical perspective. It also covers the Directives, such as the Antitrust Damages Directive and the ECN+ Directive. Investigating both public and private enforcement, it also examines the travaux préparatoires for the enforcement legislation in order to discover the drafters’ intent. The book addresses the European and the Member States’ perspectives, namely, the Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries, as harmonisation proceeds through dialogue and cooperation between the two levels. Lastly, it explores the extent to which harmonisation of the competition law enforcement framework has been accepted and implemented in the Member States’ legal systems, or has led to the fragmentation of the national systems of the CEE countries.

"This book analyzes the latest advancements and developments in personal data protection in the European Union"--

The existence of a structured enforcement system is an inherent feature of national legal orders and one of the core elements of State sovereignty. The very limited power to issue sanctions has often been deemed a gap in the EC legal order. Over the years, the situation has progressively changed. The Union’s institutional setting is growing in complexity and a variety of agencies has been or is expected to be endowed with law enforcement responsibilities. In addition, the so-called competence creep has led the EU to play an increasingly prominent role in several areas of EU law enforcement, including the issuing of sanctions. This book examines these developments, focusing on both the general features of the EU legal order and the analysis of key-substantive areas, such as banking and monetary union, environmental law, and data protection. The work thus presents a general framework for understanding EU sanctioning based on structural features and general legal principles. Part I develops an analytical framework, tracking the most significant evolutive patterns of EU sanctioning powers. Part II adopts a more practical approach focusing on specific issues and policy areas. The book bridges a gap in existing literature and sheds new light on the relationship between the exercise of jus puniendi and the evolution of EU integration.

Is it possible to achieve cybersecurity while safeguarding the fundamental rights to privacy and data protection? Addressing this question is crucial for contemporary societies, where network and information technologies have taken centre stage in all areas of communal life. This timely book answers the question with a comprehensive approach that combines legal, policy and technological perspectives to capture the essence of the relationship between cybersecurity, privacy and data protection in EU law. The book explores the values, interconnections and tensions inherent to cybersecurity, privacy and data protection within the EU constitutional architecture and its digital agendas. The work's novel analysis looks at the interplay between digital policies, instruments including the GDPR, NIS Directive, cybercrime legislation, e-evidence and cyber-diplomacy measures, and technology as a regulatory object and implementing tool. This original approach, which factors in the connections between engineering principles and the layered configuration of fundamental rights, outlines all possible combinations of the relationship between cybersecurity, privacy and data protection in EU law, from clash to complete reconciliation. An essential read for scholars, legal practitioners and policymakers alike, the book demonstrates that reconciliation between cybersecurity, privacy and data protection relies on explicit and brave political choices that require an active engagement with technology, so as to preserve human flourishing, autonomy and democracy.

Prominent privacy law experts, regulators and academics examine contemporary legal approaches to privacy from a comparative perspective.