European law MCQ Assignment

PART A (Worth 50 marks in total)

There are 20 multiple choice questions in Part A numbered 1 – 20 inclusive.

1. Questions 1-16 are each worth 2 marks. Questions 17 and 18 are each worth 4 marks. Questions 19 and 20 are each worth 5 marks.
2. Each question is followed by a series of five possible answers.
3. Read each question and decide which answer choice is most accurate.
4. Write “x” in the box next to the answer you have chosen on the downloaded word file.
5. Choose only ONE answer for EACH question. No mark will be awarded for double answers.
6. Try to answer every question. Marks are not deducted for incorrect answers.

Question 1

Which ONE of the following statements is INCORRECT?

A	The Rome Treaty established the European Economic Community;
B	The Single European Act was adopted to replace the failed Constitutional Treaty;
C	The Merger Treaty merged the three separate Communities under one Treaty;
D	The Paris Treaty was signed and ratified for a limited duration;
E	The Lisbon Treaty abolished the pillar system and replaced it with the EU competence scheme.

Question 2

Which ONE of the following statements is CORRECT?

A	Member States cannot withdraw from the European Union;
B	Withdrawal notification cannot be unilaterally revoked;
C	A Member State may decide to withdraw from the Union in accordance with its own constitutional requirements;
D	The purpose of a withdrawal agreement is to regulate trade between the EU and the UK;
E	The Trade and Cooperation Agreement establishes the jurisdiction of the Court of Justice of European Union.

Question 3

Which ONE of the following statements about post-BREXIT relations is CORRECT?

A	The Court of Justice of European Union continues to have jurisdiction in citizens’ rights provisions;
B	The UK courts cannot refer any preliminary rulings to the Court of Justice of European Union;
C	Only the UK courts of last instance may refer preliminary rulings to the Court of Justice of European Union;
D	European Council may bring EU Withdrawal Agreement infringement proceedings against the UK to the Court of Justice of European Union;
E	Since BREXIT the UK courts are no longer under the jurisdiction of the European Court of Human Rights.

Question 4

Which ONE of the following MOST ACCURATELY depicts the functions of the Council of European Union?

A	To set the political guidelines and general agenda for the European Union;
B	To draft legislative proposals for the European Commission;
C	To provide uniform interpretation of the European Union laws;
D	To monitor the enforcement of European Union laws;
E	To co-adopt the Union legislation with the European Parliament.

Question 5

What is the CORRECT composition of the European Commission? Please choose ONE option.

A	Representatives elected by the citizens of the European Union;
B	Representatives appointed by the European Council;
C	Government ministers of the Member States;
D	Representatives appointed by the Member States;
E	Heads of the Member States and/or heads of the governments of the Member States.

Question 6

Which ONE of the following CONSTITUTIONAL PRINCIPLES of EU law requires that public power must be attributed to the level of government where it can be most effectively be exercised?

A	The principle of conferral;
B	The EU competence scheme;
C	The principle of proportionality;
D	The principle of subsidiarity;
E	The principle of supremacy.

Question 7

Which ONE of the following statements does NOT describe a key feature of the ORDINARY LEGISLATIVE PROCEDURE?

	A proposal for a legislative act can only be submitted by the European Commission;
B	The submitted proposal for a legislative act is discussed by the Council and the European Parliament;
C	The Council can adopt a legislative act by qualified majority voting and approving the European Parliament’s position;
D	The European Parliament can adopt a legislative act on the first reading;
E	Proposals for legislative acts can be negotiated in formal ‘trilogue’ meetings, between the representatives of the Council, the Parliament and the Commission.

Question 8

Which ONE of the following statements CORRECTLY describes a key feature of a DIRECTIVE?

A	Directives are legislative acts that are addressed to all Member States and are legally binding as to the result to be achieved;
B	Directives are regulatory acts that are addressed to all Member States and are legally binding in their entirety;
C	Directives are considered the primary source of EU law;
D	Directives are adopted by the European Commission and are legally binding in their entirety;
E	Directives are legislative acts that are addressed to Member States and have to be implemented by the European Parliament.

Question 9

Which ONE of the following statements concerning the exclusive competence of the European Union is CORRECT?

A	The EU is bound by the principles of subsidiarity and proportionality when it legislates in the areas of exclusive competence;
B	Member States are prevented from legislating unilaterally or collectively in the area of exclusive competence unless specifically delegated by the EU;
C	Member States are allowed to legislate within the limitations imposed by the Treaties as long as the EU has not legislated or ceased to legislate;
D	The EU is allowed to legislate within the limitations imposed by the Treaties as long as the Member States have not legislated or ceased to legislate;
E	The EU may legislate to support, coordinate and supplement actions of the Member States but may not enact harmonising legislation.

 [2 marks]

Question 10

What is the MOST ACCURATE definition of the voting system currently in place in the Council of European Union? Please choose ONE option.

A	Simple majority voting;
B	Double majority voting;
C	Triple majority voting;
D	Blocked voting;
E	Proportionate voting.

Question 11

Which ONE of the following statements is INCORRECT?

A	The Charter of Fundamental Rights did not apply to the United Kingdom before BREXIT;
B	The Court of Justice of the European Union has jurisdiction to interpret the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union;
C	The Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union is an optional part of the Lisbon Treaty;
D	Member States, when they derogate from EU law, are bound by the fundamental rights;
E	Member States, when they implement EU law, are bound by the fundamental rights.

Question 12

The direct effect of general principles of EU law was established in which ONE of the following cases?

A	Van Gen den Loos;
B	Francovich;
C	Defrenne v SABENA;
D	Van Duyn;
E	Kücükdeveci.

Question 13

Which principle of the EU law requires national courts to interpret national law as far as possible consistently with EU law in such a way as to ensure that the objectives of the said EU law provision are achieved?

A	The estoppel principle;
B	The principle of state liability;
C	The principle of indirect effect;
D	The principle of direct effect;
E	The principle of supremacy of EU law.

Question 14

Which ONE of the following statements concerning the doctrine of direct effect of DIRECTIVES is CORRECT?

A	Directives are capable of having only horizontal direct effect if they are clear and precise and impose a negative obligation on a Member State;
B	Directives are capable of having only vertical direct effect against a Member State after the transposition deadline has passed;
C	Directives are capable of having both vertical and horizontal direct effect after the transposition deadline has passed;
D	Directives are capable of having only vertical direct effect after they have been adopted;
E	Directives are not capable of having horizontal or vertical direct effect because they are not directly applicable.

Question 15

Which ONE of the following statements BEST describes the criteria in the test of state liability?

A	The provision concerned must be capable of conferring rights on individuals; there must be a breach of EU law; and there must be a direct causal link between the breach and damage suffered;
B	The provision concerned must be capable of conferring rights on Member States; there must be a breach of EU law; and there must be a direct causal link between the breach and damage suffered;
C	The provision concerned must be capable of conferring rights on Member States; there must be a sufficiently serious breach of EU law; and there must be a direct causal link between the breach and damage suffered;
D	The provision concerned must be capable of conferring rights on individuals; there must be a sufficiently serious breach of EU law; and there must be a direct causal link between the breach and damage suffered;
E	The provision concerned must be capable of conferring rights on the European Union; there must be a sufficiently serious breach of EU law; and there must be a direct causal link between the breach and damage suffered.

Question 16

Which ONE of the following would NOT be considered ‘SERVICES’ within the meaning of Article 57 TFEU?

A	A self-employed lawyer opening his own law firm in another Member State;
B	An academic providing a guest lecture at a private university in another Member State;
C	A woman travelling to another Member State to terminate her pregnancy;
D	A transmission of programmes from broadcasters in one Member State to cable networks in another;
E	A plastic surgeon travelling to another Member State to carry out a breast augmentation surgery at a public hospital.

Question 17

Which ONE of the following individuals would be considered an EU citizen’s FAMILY MEMBER within the meaning of Article 2(2) of Directive 2004/38?

A	An EU citizen’s 10-year-old nephew with severe learning disability;
B	An EU citizen’s registered partner’s 21-year-old son who is a full-time student and has a part-time job;
C	An EU citizen’s 50-year-old mother with multiple sclerosis who requires constant personal care;
D	An EU citizen’s 60-year-old grandmother who works part-time and has sufficient resources to support herself and sickness insurance;
E	An EU citizen’s long-term boyfriend with whom they have a duly attested durable relationship.

Question 18

Which ONE of the following technical barriers to trade would be considered in breach of Trade and Cooperation Agreement ANNEX-TBT-5?

A	A tariff imposed by the Swedish government on imported white wine from the United Kingdom;
B	A ban imposed by the United Kingdom prohibiting importation of locally produced organic wine from Portugal;
C	A rule imposed by the Spanish government requiring all imported wine bottles to include a label indicating the year of crop;
D	A rule imposed by the Serbian government requiring all imported wine packaging to contain the date of production;
E	A rule imposed by the Greek government requiring all imported wine packaging to contain the date of production.

Question 19

Janis is a full-time law professor at a small private university (University) in Warsaw, Poland. According to his employment contract Janis is required to spend at least 20 hours a week on administrative work and as a result he has not been able to publish anything in the past 18 months. He is worried that this damages his reputation as a professor.

Janis learns that the EU has adopted the (fictitious) Directive 101/2019 (the Directive) with the purpose to harmonise the hours full-time staff can be required to spend on administrative tasks at higher education institutions. According to the Directive a full-time staff member cannot be required to spend more than 10 hours on administrative tasks a week. The transposition deadline of the Directive was 31 December 2020.

When Janis confronts the University’s HR manager, he is told that the (fictitious) Law of Employment Act in Poland enables universities to require full-time staff members to spend no more than 25 hours a week on administrative tasks. The HR manager tells Janis that the University is obliged to follow domestic law and not some random EU Directive.

Which ONE of the following CASES can Janis rely on to invoke the Directive 101/2019 against his employer?

A	Francovich;
B	Van Duyn;
C	Marleasing;
D	Kücükdeveci;
E	Defrenne v Sabena.

Question 20

Thiago and Clara are both Brazilian nationals and have been residing in London for the past seven years. They have two children at school who were born in France and are both French nationals. Thiago and Clara owned a restaurant in Hackney that served only organic food that was gluten and dairy free. Things were going well for a while, but restaurant industry has really taken a hit in the pandemic and they have had to close for business. They have lost all their income and begin to struggle financially. They are now worried they will receive a deportation order from the United Kingdom government.

Which ONE of the following statements is CORRECT?

A	Thiago and Clara have the right to reside in the United Kingdom under Article 21 TFEU;
B	Thiago and Clara have the right to reside in the United Kingdom because they are self-employed;
C	Thiago and Clara do not have the right to stay in the United Kingdom because they are unemployed;
D	Thiago and Clara have the right to reside in the United Kingdom because their children are EU nationals;
E	Thiago and Clara cannot apply for permanent residence under EU Settlement Scheme because they are not EU nationals.

[5 marks]

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