A European civil code as a building block for a European social model?

In his fascinating new book, Hugh Collins, one of the leading English scholars of European private law, explores the legal, social and political potential of a European civil code--what a courageous and provocative enterprise for a common lawyer! For Collins, the current legitimacy crisis of the European Union, which became apparent with the failure of the Constitutional Treaty and the difficult ratification process of the Lisbon Treaty, is largely due to the lack of a sufficiently integrated transnational civil society as the basis of a political union. Instead, a successful community would need to be rooted in the bonds established through commonplace social interactions, through working together in productive activities, through exchange of goods and services, the establishment of private associations and family relations. These relations of civil society should form the bedrock out of which political communities and shared identities arise. For through the long-term repetition of social interactions within civil society emerges a belief on the part of the participants that they are members of the same community and share a common identity (p.2). As private law--principally the law of property, civil wrongs and contracts governing relations between citizens--constitutes and regulates these relations, a European code of private law is ascribed the potential of enabling and gradually shaping a transnational civil society with a common identity. To achieve this task, a novel style codification is required which fulfils the role of a true transnational constitution of civil society faithful to a European social model characterised by fairness and social justice.

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