THE DILEMMA BETWEEN LEGITIMATE AND FUNCTIONAL LAW IN THE EUROPEAN UNION : How the Greeks and a Financial Crisis Undermine the European Regulatory State

Abstract

Many scholars have advanced theories concerning the so-called democracy deficit in the European Union. The global financial crisis and the sovereign debt crisis in Europe has given a new perspective on how to view these theories, particularly the argument proffered by Giandomenico Majone that the European Union should be judged as a regulatory state. The two crises in Europe have cast doubt on the ability of the European Union as a regulatory state to legitimately engage in functional rule making that can meet the demands of integration. This suggests that the European Union faces a dilemma between a functional but illegitimate government or a dysfunctional but legitimate government. The genesis of this dilemma derives from a conflicted vision of the European Union. As such, before Europe can move forward towards finding a legitimate and functional rule of law, it must first secure a unified vision of itself.