Equality as a category of law and a value of the European Union

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to analyze equality as a key principle of EU law and one of the fundamental values upon which the European Union is based. Initially, the evolution of the concept of equality and the significance of the value for the EU is briefly examined. Two dimensions of equality are explored, which are sometimes referred to as the horizontal and vertical dimensions: the equality of states and the equality of EU citizens. The equality of states is characterized as the equality of states before the Treaties and EU law, and its features are described. The author shows how equality has transformed and adapted to the supranational legal order of the EU, particularly through a kind of compromise between the principle of equality of states and the equality of citizens in the form of decision-making procedures in the EU. It is pointed out that the principle of unanimity in decision-making by the EU Council has largely been displaced by the principle of qualified majority and the procedures for joint decision-making by the Council and the European Parliament. The author analyzes in detail components such as equality of rights and women, the elimination of discrimination, primarily based on racial and national belonging, as well as equal pay for equal work or work of equal value.

The article analyzes the regulation of values in both primary and secondary EU law. Specific provisions of the Treaty on European Union and the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union and the Charter of Fundamental Rights, which is part of them, are examined. Separate consideration is given to equality in the judicial practice of the Court of Justice of the EU, which has recognized equality as a universal principle of EU law and the foundation of the EU. The principle of equal treatment according to the Court of the EU requires that comparable situations should not be treated differently and that different situations should not be treated equally unless such treatment is objectively justified. The interpretation of individual elements of equality by the Court of the EU is explored. Thus, the scope of the principle includes not only the rights of men and women, but also those of individuals who have changed their gender. The relationship between joint treatment and discrimination is examined. In the concluding part of the article, the author formulates conclusions. The article analyzes the regulation of values in primary and secondary EU law. Specific provisions of the Treaty on European Union and the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, as well as the Charter of Fundamental Rights, which is part of them, are discussed. Equality in the case law of the Court of the EU is considered separately, where equality has been recognized as having the rank of a universal principle of EU law and as a foundation of the EU.