With over 25 years of experience in European Union law, Dermot Cahill has held significant positions, including working with the European Commission, practicing as an antitrust and corporate finance lawyer, and teaching at notable institutions. As Dean at the University of Wales, Bangor, he contributed to its ranking among the top UK law schools. A graduate of the College of Europe, Cahill has earned numerous awards and published extensively in prestigious journals. He is recognized for his expertise in EU law, contributing to parliamentary inquiries, advising on Brexit, and leading cross-border projects aimed at improving governance and procurement practices. His work has significantly influenced government contracting policies in Wales and beyond. Cahill also co-directs the UMKC Ireland Summer Law Academy, enhancing US law students’ understanding of EU law and its impact on business.
CLE Presentations
Professor Dermot Cahill, formerly Dean of Bangor Law School, University of Wales, will describe the main features of the key European Union Institutions and how they interact, both with one another, and with the 27 EU Member States, making laws and policies that govern the European Union’s Internal Market, the largest consumer market in the world where goods, services, workers, capital and corporations’ activities can flow freely between all 27 Member States.
Now in operation since the 1957 Treaty of Rome, the European Union continues to attract new Members and is a favoured destination for US corporations seeking to take advantage of its Four Commercial Freedoms. Ireland, in particular, is a favoured location for US FDI.
The Union’s response to the COVID crisis and to the war in Ukraine has demonstrated that the Union is more than just an economic union, and shows the advantages of working together in common cause, despite varying national interests, demonstrating the key role that the Rule of Law plays at the heart of the Union’s success.
In this session, Professor Dermot Cahill will examine the workings of the European Court of Justice of the European Union, its collegiate nature, its composition, its deliberations in French, its focus on written pleading and short time limits, how other countries can intervene in a case involving another Member State, and its independence in judging disputers not only between the various EU institutions but also its role in interpreting EU law for the benefit of the 27 EU Member States legal systems.
Professor Cahill will consider the Article 267 procedure which allows even the lowliest court or tribunal in the land to directly send a request for a preliminary ruling direct to the Court of Justice in Luxembourg asking it to interpret European Union law that is pertinent to a local dispute before the local court.
Professor Cahill will also demonstrate how all 27 national Supreme Courts have accepted the rulings of the Court of Justice (despite some occasional wobbles) and finally will consider the impact its rulings have had on accelerating human progress across all Member States since 1957.
Professor Cahill will address the role of Law and Supranational Institutions in underpinning the longevity and endurance of the European Union, looking at the main legal doctrines, law-making institutions, methods of law making, and methods of legal interpretation of the European Union legal framework, as well as the relationship between the Court of Justice and the national EU Member States’ judicial systems. The lecture introduces participants to the legal and political framework and institutions of the European Union, including the European Commission, the Council of Ministers, the Court of Justice, the Court of Auditors, and the European Parliament. The lecture examines the interlocking web of European treaties, the expansion of the EU, the EU as a trade block, and Ireland as a gateway to the EU or non-bloc nations (e.g., USA) enterprises, goods and services, and plans for future integration of the bloc.
The legal and political framework and institutions of the European Union and how they contrast with US Federal law-making institutions will be considered, as will their interaction with each other in the law-making and dispute resolution process; the different types of EU legislation will be considered and how they apply across the EU Member States; the composition and role of the European Commission shall be considered, both as the proposer of new EU laws and as Enforcer of EU Law, as well as its role in global merger control which can adversely affect mergers in the USA; the composition and role of the Council (of Ministers) as EU law-making body; the composition and role of the European Council; the composition and role of the Court of Justice and its judicial dialogue with Member State Courts, as well as its jurisdiction to hear enforcement actions brought by the Commission or Private or State parties; the role and powers of the European Central Bank vis the Euro currency; and the role of the European Parliament in law- making, and its relationship with the Council.
The lecture also has a substantial international comparative focus (US vs EU) and also contextualizes the EU within the socio-legal environment of the host country (Ireland).
Participants acquire substantial international and comparative focus during this lecture by becoming familiar with the European Union legal framework; its major judicial and law-making institutions; and its case law, doctrines, and legislation. This enables participants to reflect and make apt comparisons with corresponding US law-making processes and legal principles, giving them a broader world view both in terms of legal and socio- legal perspectives.
Professor Cahill will introduce us to the Four Freedoms which underpin the world’s largest free trading area, the European Union. The relationship between the EU’s Four Freedoms and National Laws is considered, as is the Single European Act Treaty and the subsequent development of the EU’s Internal Market. Consideration of the Four Freedoms covers:
- The Free Movement of Goods (the Prohibition on Border Tariffs; the Permissible Tolerances of Non- Discriminatory Internal Taxation; The Prohibition on Quantitative Restrictions between EU Member States; tariff and quota-free trade between EU Member States and how US corporations in Europe benefit from this regime;
- The Free Movement of Workers and Residence in other EU Member States;
- The Free Movement of Services & The Freedom of Establishment for Corporations and Professionals in the EU;
- Freedom of Capital & the Euro.
This course will confer on participants knowledge of one of the world’s major legal orders and how the Four Freedoms underpin European Integration and are
continuously reshaped by Court of Justice Jurisprudence. US based clients contemplating doing business in the European Union will require advice on strategic issues when considering trading inside the EU’s 27 Member States, whether in taxation, workers rights, tariffs,
cross-border provision of services and establishment of corporations, freedom of capital etc.. The lecture will conclude with some examples from Professor Cahill showing how the European Commission can exercise
it global jurisdiction to prohibit mergers taking place in the US even though the corporations concerned have no