The preliminary reference procedure requires the Court of Justice to interpret the Treaty and national courts to apply that interpretation to the facts. However, often the Court gives such specific interpretations that the role of the national court is rendered trivial. This paper argues that...

It is well known that EU citizenship is parasitic upon national citizenship. To become an EU citizen it is necessary to be a citizen of one of the Member States, and the states have exclusive competence to decide who their own citizens are. They therefore function as gatekeepers, and jealously...