The single market and national administrative laws: best enemies?

• Author: Estelle Chambas
• Pages: 681-694

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THE SINGLE MARKET AND NATIONAL

ADMINISTRATIVE LAWS: BEST ENEMIES?

Estelle Chambas

PhD Student and Teaching Assistant

Université Panthéon-Assas (Paris II)

ABSTRACT

Acknowledging the increase of flows of different natures within the single market due to

the EU construction and globalisation, this paper aims at explaining how the impermeability

of national legal orders regarding their administrative laws can be conciliated with an ever

bigger necessity of the circulation of administrative acts. Indeed, to protect the four freedoms,

it is unavoidable to allow the movement of administrative decisions in a more rapid manner

than the technique of the individual recognition of each act by the recipient States. This goes in

direct contradiction with the principle of territoriality and the concept of sovereignty. Trying

to solve this paradox, this article proposes the creation of a new category of administrative

decisions: transnational administrative acts. They are administrative decisions which have

legal effects abroad without needing any individual measure of reception by the recipient

States. Explaining how administrative transnationality can function, this paper explores the

different legal difficulties linked to a single space divided in 28 States.

Key words: Administrative decision — Transnationality — International Public Law —

European Law — Public law

1. INTRODUCTION

1. Since its beginning, the European construction has been aiming at deleting

any impediment to the free circulation of goods, people, services and capital which

led to the creation of the single market in 1993. This market covers a space composed

of the European Union Member States’ territories and highly favours the develop-

ment of the four flows aforementioned in the aim of « creating an ever closer union

among the peoples of Europe »1.

1 Maastricht Treaty, 7th of February 1992, p. 4.