This book gives a detailed analysis of the making of the Treaty of Nice, the current treaty of the European Union, adopted in 2000. It analysis the interests and strategies of the various actors, including the 15 Member States, during the negotiations and tries to explain the main institutional changes: re-weighting of votes in the Council of Ministers, future changes in the composition of the European Commission, extended use of qualified majority voting and easier conditions for a smaller group of Member States going faster in the integration process ('enhanced cooperation').

The Oxford Handbook of the European Union brings together numerous acknowledged specialists in their field to provide a comprehensive and clear assessment of the nature, evolution, workings, and impact of European integration.

Contains essays on the enlargement and constitution of the European Union.

An in-depth, impartial and informed description of the Lisbon Treaty's legal features, in their historical and political context.

This comprehensive book provides a thorough analytical overview of the European Union’s existing law and policy in the field of international trade. Considering the history and context of the law’s evolution, it offers an adept examination of its common commercial policy competence through the years, starting with the Treaty of Rome up until the Treaty of Lisbon, as a background for understanding the EU’s present role in the World Trade Organization (WTO) framework.

The Lisbon Treaty, which came into force in December 2009, aims to make the European Union both more efficient and legitimate. Two new important posts were created; an elected President of the European Council and a High Representative (HR) of the Union for Foreign and Security Policy who will also be a Vice-President of the Commission. Leading international scholars have been gathered together to examine the institutional choices and innovations of the Lisbon Treaty and discuss the likely effects of these changes. Will the changes meet the declared goals of a more efficient and democratic Union which will allow the EU to act internationally with greater coherence and efficiency? If institutions matter, how much do they matter? How significant is the Lisbon Treaty? What kind of leadership will be available in the post-Lisbon EU?

Thanks to new transparency rules and increased efforts by scholars, researchers are better equipped than ever before to analyze the decision-making processes of the Council of the European Union and to test old wisdoms. This book covers the most contentious areas and important debates in current research.