The Different Forms of Abuse of Law and Process in the European Union

The Court of Justice of the European Union (EU) has long contributed to the concept of abuse of law. In The Different Forms of Abuse of Law and Process in the European Union, Prof. Dimitris Liakopoulos presents his research regarding the functionality of the fight against abuse as a legal technique through a comparison of alternative techniques. Through this research, Liakopoulos provides a thorough understanding of the legal meaning and operation of the prohibition on the abuse of rights in the EU. The book also reviews how it may be used as a legal technique either to exclude the application of EU law or to deny the right attributed by EU law where abusive behavior by a private individual is found.

The book concludes with an analysis of the abuse process in the criminal sector and in the common law system, with special consideration of the system in the United States. Looking at the Anglo-Saxon system, the overall theoretical abuse of process is based on the principle of fairness: If a fair trial cannot take place, or if it would be unfair to continue a criminal trial against anyone, we would be facing a "false" process. After all, the accused is no longer in a position to exercise his faculties and rights fully and to continue would be an outrage against the moral integrity of the system. The Different Forms of Abuse of Law and Process in the European Union provides paradigm-shifting answer to the question: Does the practice surpass the theory?

Dimitris Liakopoulos is professor of International law, European Union Law and Criminal Law and connected to universities in the U.S. and Europe. Attorney at Law in New York and Brussels. ORCID ID: 0000-0002-1048-6468.