Abstract ▼

The paper focuses on the analysis of the democratic deficit in the European Union (EU). There are different explanations in academic literature for this topic. The concept of a “democratic deficit” is multifaceted, and the subject study is limited to analyzing its meaning within the EU. The study involves first analyzing the characteristics of the functioning of the EU system, then analyzing inter-institutional relations within the Union, as well as observations regarding the communication of European administration and European citizens and their participation in the everyday life of the EU. The intention of the author of this study is to demonstrate possible sources of democratic deficit at Union level through explanations of the correlation between the European Parliament as the only body directly elected by European citizens and the European Commission, which has a significant legislative role and political power, although it is not directly responsible to the European citizens.

Abstract ▼

The paper deals with the issue of responsibility as an ethical concept and as one of the key features of human activity. The question of responsibility (precontractual or any other) is related to the question of the place and the reach of the principle of conscientiousness and fairness in the legal system of the European Union and in our country. Therefore, the basic principles underlying responsibility are analyzed in this paper. The conditions (assumptions) of the existence of morality and the special importance of consciousness for moral practice and moral behavior have been processed individually. Special attention is dedicated to analyzing the types of responsibilities and their disadvantage. Part of the work is dedicated to defining the scope of different types of responsibilities, and above all political responsibility in our country and in Europe. The compatibility of the solutions accepted in our legislation with the rules of European contract law regarding the regulation of this institute is considered at the end of this paper.

Abstract ▼

The evolution of the European identity in the EU does not exclude but implies respect and protection of the national identities. Through а detailed analysis of the national identity and its development through the Treaties and enhanced cooperation of national constitutional courts and the European Court of Justice, we come to the conclusion that the Member States tend to take the lead when it comes to the interpretation of the content and importance of their national identities in the EU legal system. In the ECJ case law, the most frequent questions were related to the interpretation of the protection of the national identity with a special emphasis on the constitutional identity as a counterbalance to the EU principle of primacy. Protection of the national identity encompasses the adequate application of the proportionality test by the ECJ from one side, and from the other the margin of discretion and appreciation that is left to the Member States. The European Court of Justice has developed a flexible approach, building it on the opinions of Advocates General and following national tendencies regarding the protection of their national and constitutional values. Bearing in mind the evolution of the content of the national identity and its interpretation in terms of the EU legal system, the ECJ also delivered judgments that do not aim at interpreting the national identity but rather give guidelines to the Member States when it comes to the protection of the national identity.

Abstract ▼

The aim of the analysis is to investigate one of the most important rights guaranteed by the General Regulation of the European Union 2016/679 on data protection, which is the right to delete (the right to forget). The study found that the right to erase personal data was established even at the time of the Directive 95/46 / EC and the case “Google v. Spain.” After that judgment, it was proved that numerous requests were made to Google for deleting data. With the new Regulation, the right to delete is extended and detailed. It has been established that there are some difficulties in the implementation of this right in practice. Above all, the question arises as to how the provision on the right to delete will apply in the case of new technologies, such as the “block chain” technologies. Secondly, the question arises as to how the provision on the right to delete will be implemented in companies. Third, the question is how will the exercise of the rights of employees to erase personal data affect the business of companies? Finally, a particularly sensitive issue regarding the right to delete personal data appears in the health service sector. The survey found that good citizen education and engagement of experts in the field of data protection is necessary, but also for the development of internal procedures for handling requests for deletion, including the provision of the adequate financial sources. In this paper, normative and legal-logical methods of induction and deduction are used.

Abstract ▼

The protection of natural persons with respect to the processing of personal data is a fundamental right prescribed by Article 8 (1) of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union and Article 16 (1) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU). Rapid technological development and globalization brought new challenges to the protection of personal data. The technology allows the processing of personal data on an incredible scale in order to carry out activities such as prevention, investigation, detection or prosecution of criminal offenses or the execution of criminal sanctions. The European Union, therefore, adopted the Directive 2016/680 on 27 April 2016, which regulated the protection of natural persons for the processing of personal data by the competent authorities for the purpose of prevention, investigation, detection or prosecution of criminal offenses or for the enforcement of criminal sanctions, i.e. to facilitate the free movement of such data, together with the General Data Protection Regulation EU 2016/679 (GDPR). The author deals with the analysis of the content of the Directive and the purpose of its adoption. The author devotes special attention to the issue of the importance of the EU Directive 2016/680 for the legal order of the Republic of Serbia. In this regard, the author appeals to raise awareness of the importance of the EU Directive 2016/680 in the process of adopting a new Law on the Protection of Personal Data and harmonization of internal legislation with the EU acquis in this area.

Abstract ▼

A significant part of the European Union\'s activities is financed from traditional own resources. However, these sources are volatile and uncertain considering the trend of trade liberalization, which has been present in recent decades. This research reviews the change in tendencies of their significance over time, as well as their wider impact on the welfare of different social groups within the European Union. The research employs the historical method, conceptual analysis of law and economic analyses of law, consisting of descriptive statistics and comparative statics methods by which the results were obtained indicating suboptimality of reliance on the traditional own resources. The results implicate the need for identifying alternative sources of financing for the European Union.

Abstract ▼

Banks play a major role in financial markets as they are in a position to engage in the collection of information, and this additionally helps productive investment in the economy. Contemporary trends are characterized by control of the banking market, which is the basic characteristic of the organization of economic and financial activities in their interaction with the legal system. In that sense, the process of development of the banking market is conditioned by the application of new technologies, in order to raise public control to a higher level. The main motives for public control of the banking market are to maintain stability and protect investors. Public control is related to the nature of the risk that occurs in banks due to the effects of the application of new technologies, investments and banking competition. Public control should not be a limiting factor in the development of the banking market. If it were otherwise social costs would be greater than the benefits to be gained by regulatory measures. In case of deterioration of the balance sheet, the bank is usually sold or liquidated. The risk of such situations has negative effects on other banks as it affects the spread of uncertainty and fear with their depositors, which in the end can cause a crisis in the banking system. States in such situations resort to the application of regulatory measures through rehabilitation, restructuring and consolidation. In the conditions of the general economic crisis of the Еurozone, the EU member states did not apply the same supervisory standards which additionally affected the crisis of the banking sector.

Abstract ▼

The subject of the work includes the analysis of the Directive 2002/47 / EC on financial collateral arrangements whose implementation in the legal order of the Republic of Serbia was completed by the adoption of the Law of financial collaterals, on June 8, 2018. The author first exposes the basic solutions contained in the Directive, then the methods and mechanisms for its incorporation into the internal order, and then refers to the disadvantages and inconsistencies that have been missed by the legislator when compiling the final text of the Law. At the same time, the author also gives some explanations about the place and role of some new legal institutes in the internal legislation, as well as a critical overview of the consequences that the introduction of such a sophisticated legal regime will produce in the Republic of Serbia.

Abstract ▼

In contemporary international economic relations, the European Union insists on open and fair international trade. However, with new trade trends, there is a serious fear of the European Union from the unfair and unsustainable trade practices of some countries that lead to the takeover of European companies in key industrial branches. In order to protect its own strategic interests, the competent authorities of the European Union adopted in September 2017 a draft Regulation establishing a framework for screening foreign direct investment from the third countries, with reference to security reasons and public order. In the draft Regulation, the Member States have been given some flexibility necessary to check foreign investment in changed circumstances and specific national frameworks. The draft Regulation provides for mechanisms of cooperation between States, in particular where foreign direct investment in one or more Member States can affect security and public order in the other Member States. In addition, the draft also provides for cases where the Commission can control investments that may affect projects or programs of vital interest for the European Union, and for reasons of security and public order.

Abstract ▼

In the process of European integration, the Republic of Serbia must, inter alia, fulfill the requirements related to the state aid policy, that is, it must harmonize the state aid control system with the acquis communautaire. The need to regulate the state aid allocation system stems from the fact that because of its selective nature, uncontrolled state aid can disturb free trade and competition within the single market of the European Union. The paper analyzes the activities of the competent institutions of the Republic of Serbia regarding the measures proposed by the European Commission for the opening of the negotiation chapter 8 related to competition policy. The aim of the paper is to find out what activities have been undertaken by the competent institutions in the past period regarding the regulation of the state aid control system as an important mechanism for protecting competition. In this way, all efforts can be considered, as well as the omissions of the competent authorities aimed at fulfilling the requirements of the European Commission to obtain the conditions for opening a negotiating chapter in relation to competition. In addition, the analysis of the regulatory framework makes it possible to point out the importance of building an efficient state aid allocation system that must be in line with the acquis communautaire to fulfill one of the important conditions for acquiring a full member status. The paper first starts from the analysis of the regulatory framework for state aid control in the European Union and Serbia with particular reference to each type of state aid, such as horizontal, sectoral, regional and de minimis state aid. Then, the results of the conducted screening and the measures proposed by the European Commission regarding the state aid concession in the Republic of Serbia were pointed out with the aim of opening the negotiation chapter 8 related to competition policy, as well as activities that the competent institutions of the Republic of Serbia took in the past to fulfill these measures. Finally, at the end of the paper, the most important conclusions drawn from the analysis were presented, the contribution of the work was pointed out and recommendations for regulation of the state aid control area in the Republic of Serbia were given.

Abstract ▼

The acquisition of goods, services and public works is based on the best price and quality ratio, which cannot be achieved without an adequate level of competition on the market. Whereas competition between competitors in an open call for tenders depends on the award criteria and terms set out by the contracting authority, public bodies may under certain circumstances limit the competition for a market. Such exceptions must be justified by the public interest criterion. Considering that services of general economic interest (SGEI) represent a special segment of a competitive market economy, this paper focuses on the duty of competitive conduct of public authorities in procuring services of general economic interest. The primary law of the EU is neutral as regards the character of ownership and recognizes two categories of privileged enterprises: those with special and exclusive rights. The subject analysis focuses on the sources of the European Union law and the practice of the European Court of Justice, which establish the legal framework for ensuring competition in the procurement of services of general economic interest. It also provides an overview of existing limitations in this area.

Abstract ▼

A trade margin or a price difference is a very important indicator of overall performance of business entities. Its size directly or indirectly distorts the effects of all critical success factors in trading companies, or overall trade and its individual sectors. The average retailer in Serbia is forced to put between 45 and 55 different levies into the trade margin, unlike his counterparts in Slovakia, Poland, the Czech Republic and Hungary, which have between 12 and 22 levies. Are prices higher in Serbia compared to countries in the region? The authors have tried finding the answer to this question by analyzing and comparing prices in retail facilities in Nis, a city in Serbia and Sofia, a city in Bulgaria. The rise in prices in Serbia is influenced, among other things, by the underdeveloped structure of our trade and the insufficient level of competition between trade entities in the wholesale and retail market. In order to protect consumers, economic policy makers take certain measures to prevent uncontrolled price growth through the creation of legal regulations of different intensities of legal force. The Law on Consumer Protection, as well as certain Regulations from different fields, have the tendency to harmonize with adequate legal norms the disagreement between the factual and legal situation in the field of the trade when the producers engage in market competition but also when they interact with the consumers. At present, the primary task is to systematise the necessary guidelines for future operations in order to complete and further strengthen consumer protection in Serbia. The main directions of the future strategy should be the consolidation of the legal framework. It is necessary, first of all, to analyze, supplement and correct all existing regulations in Serbia which directly or indirectly affect the level of consumer protection and ensure the regulations that regulate this area are closely aligned with the European legislation.

Abstract ▼

By harmonizing domestic legislation with the law of the European Union, the conditions that will enable domestic companies to be competitive and equal in the European market are created. The harmonization of domestic commercial law with the law of the European Union is related by the Negotiation Chapter 9 which the Republic of Serbia should fulfill in the process of accession to the European Union. In the area of the legal framework that relates to the operations of companies, harmonization is required regarding the internal procedural rules of the company\'s shareholders assembly. These rules are covered by the Rules of Procedure of the General Meeting of Shareholders. This internal legal act does not have the status of a founding act but, however, it has to be in compliance with it. This is the consequence of a legal hierarchy that exists under the Law of companies. The authors devote special attention to the analysis of the relevant legal rules that refer to the Rules of Procedure of the Shareholders Assembly, and in this regard they conclude it would be necessary to further harmonize these rules with the solutions existing in the ЕU law, which correspond more to the commercial nature of this form of economic association.

Abstract ▼

The subject analysis is concentrated on the research of factors that influence the process of migration, which is a major problem of the contemporary foreign and security policy of the European Union (EU). The paper first provides appropriate theoretical explanations of economic immigration from World War II, as well as the existence of an empirical link between economic factors and immigration policies of the EU member states. With this approach, the goal of the research is derived from the knowledge about the influence of certain economic indicators on the approaches to solving the contemporary migrant crisis. The results of the research confirm the existence of a link between economic factors and migratory movements. Taking into account the frequency of economic factors and economic motivational impulses in migratory movements, using the methods of observation, analysis of content, comparative and statistical methods, the author has managed to point out the most important factors of migratory movements towards the EU member states.

Abstract ▼

Today, the European Union is facing many responsible tasks related to solving problems in connection with the new security challenges, risks and threats, such as terrorism, human trafficking or hybrid threats by state and non-state actors. In the years ahead, Europe will probably change its role in the global security agenda. This will require a strong European Union, which can enhance the peace and security of the member states. Thanks to the Common Security and Defense Policy (CSDP), the European Union has become one of the largest security carriers through civilian and military missions. Through the analysis of the Common Security and Defense Policy, the authors want to point to the existing constraints facing the European Union and to determine the degree of harmonization of national defense policies when it comes to developing the operational capacities of the European Union\'s actors.

Abstract ▼

Cross-border cooperation is a process that is still improving even though there are visible positive effects. However, there are also some negative effects that represent contemporary security challenges. The integration and creation of the Union of European countries was not an easy process, not only in the economic and legal sense but also in terms of the perception of that communion which had to be created and empowered in the citizens. Regional integration is an unstoppable process that is not only based on the establishment of a more secure and safer region, but rather to a greater extent has a goal in establishing business connections, which undoubtedly has significant positive effects, primarily in the fields of economy, social life, environmental protection and cultural relations. There is a significant influence on the political aspects as well. This research will examine some of the basics of important issues related to the importance of cross-border cooperation and the European Committee of the Regions (CoR).

Abstract ▼

The crisis of multiculturalism in Europe is often related to the European migrant crisis. The author points out that the crisis of European multiculturalism has started much earlier. The issue of multiculturalism in the European Union had been regulated at national level. Individual models of the EU members, such as assimilation and ”guest workers” models, did not correspond to the classic definition of multiculturalism. 9/11 attack had caused the fight against terrorism worldwide. That had a consequence on European multiculturalism by transforming it. Since the beginning of the 21st-century, multiculturalism in Europe had changed into the question of integration of Islam into the European societies. The paper points out that the migration crisis is only one of the factors that contributed to the deepest crisis of multiculturalism in Europe so far. The author tries to answer the question to what extent it is possible to stop the further collapse of European multiculturalism.

Abstract ▼

International trade arbitrage has developed in the sphere of international trade relations. Today, it plays a very important role in the adjudication of disputes that accompany these relationships. The characteristic of the international law on commercial arbitration is that it represents a set of regulations that regulate the establishment and procedure of international trade arbitration, as well as the enactment, recognition and enforcement of an arbitration award. It is called international due to the international character of the disputes it regulates, as well as due to a large number of international legal sources that apply to that institution. Internationally accepted in the business world, international trade arbitration is regulated by numerous international conventions, national laws and regulations of institutional arbitration. International trade arbitration consists of two types of regulations – material and processive, which differ in their content and purposes. The first regulations appear as materially applicable law determined by the parties themselves or arbitrators and serve the arbitrators to decide on the substance of the arbitration dispute, while the procedural regulations serve to be the arbitration preceding itself or the recognition and enforcement of an arbitration decision. It is relevant to point out that international trade arbitration is based on the combination of internal (national) and international law. Therefore, the aim of international trade arbitration is to harmonize and divide resources of different origin in order to serve more efficiently the arbitral proceedings and more objective and faster-making verdicts. At first, the regulations governing national arbitration were the basic framework in which arbitration law was further developed, even the international type. The subsequent development of arbitration law, especially in the light of the broad adoption of multinational conventions, and the development of the idea that the harmonization of very different national rights is a necessary condition for the development of international arbitration, followed the reform of national legislation achieved in the last few decades. Their common feature is that the regulation of international arbitration is separated into an independent entity, principally separated from the regulation applicable to the settlement of disputes by domestic entities in disputes in which there is no international element. So is the Arbitration Law, which came into force in 2006 and completely regulated all issues of arbitration settlement of disputes in internal arbitration and disputes with a foreign element or international arbitration, modelled on the Model Law of UNCITRAL. By analyzing the current state of the legislation in the field of arbitration, it can be concluded that the arbitration law in the Republic of Serbia, whose fundamental reform was carried out by the Law on Arbitration in 2006, fully followed the contemporary trend in international arbitration law, both by content and by forms. Consequently, it can be said that in this way a precondition for popularization and affirmation of international trade arbitration has been created, which can contribute to the development of international trade relations.