Graham Butler
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grahambutler.bsky.social
Graham Butler
@grahambutler.bsky.social
700 followers 650 following 25 posts

Full Professor of Law, Linnaeus University, Sweden. Web: grahambutler.eu

Political science 61%
Business 21%
Posts Media Videos Starter Packs

New book, now published.

The EU Law of Investment: Past, Present, and Future (Hart Publishing/Bloomsbury, 2025), edited by Xavier Groussot, Marja-Liisa Öberg, and Graham Butler.

Hardback, here: www.bloomsbury.com/uk/eu-law-of...

Full open access, here: doi.org/10.5040/9781...

#EUlaw

Appeals brought by Member States against General Court judgments to the Court of Justice under Article 56 of CJEU Statute

Case C-728/23 P.

Nice to see both a book I co-edited and an article I authored cited in the Opinion of the Advocate General today

curia.europa.eu/juris/docume...

#EUlaw #CJEU

This week in Copenhagen:

Meeting of the Agents (of the Member States) before the @eucourtofjustice.bsky.social ⚖️ at the @danishmfa.bsky.social 🇩🇰🇪🇺

Speeches and discussion practice, procedure, and reasoning, sharing the stage with Niels Fenger, Susanne Lehrer, and Rass Holdgaard.

#EUlaw #CJEU

Vacancy:

Doctoral Fellowship in European Law, Linnaeus University, Sweden.

📅 Apps: by 1 Nov '25.
💡 On offer: 4-year full-time salaried position.
💭 Interest in: Competition, data protection, privacy law.

👉 Job ID: HR-2025/1249:

🔗 EN: web103.reachmee.com/ext/I009/613...

#EUlaw

Reposted by Graham Butler

Another EU law institute has arrived on Bluesky! 👋

Starting with a blog post you can really sink your teeth into... 🦇
🧛🍬 Trademark clash in Finland over “Dracula” goods 🇫🇮

Supreme Court of 🇫🇮 referred the case to the CJEU 🇪🇺

CJEU ⚖️🇪🇺: national law cannot strip enforcement rights due to inactivity, unless acquiescence rules in the Trademark Directive

Maximum harmonisation ✅

👉 niels.institute/2025/08/04/c...

#EUlaw

Can the High Representative of the EU 🇪🇺 be in CJEU proceedings ⚖️ in their individual capacity (i.e., not as Commission VP, Head of the EEAS, other 'hats')?

Evidently, yes, though with nuances as intervener, applicant, and defendant.

My contribution in a new Festschrift:

doi.org/10.1163/9789...

Is the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) leaning too heavily on 'solidarity' in its rulings?

I argue yes, and that is problematic as a matter of legal reasoning.

The full article is in current issue of the Maastricht Journal (MJ):

doi.org/10.1177/1023...

New book out now.

Research Handbook on EEA Internal Market Law, edited by one, but written by many.

Focusing on the internal market aspects of the EFTA pillar of the EEA.

Available in hardback: www.e-elgar.com/shop/gbp/res...

Available online: doi.org/10.4337/9781...

#EUlaw #EEAlaw

Reposted by Graham Butler

An excellent European Affairs Committee’s session on the legal aspects of UK-EU reset with @cbarnard.bsky.social, @grahambutler.bsky.social & Sir Richard Aikens is now available on-demand parliamentlive.tv/event/index/...
Parliamentlive.tv
European Affairs Committee
parliamentlive.tv

Reposted by Graham Butler

Deposit return schemes (on drinks containers)

Are they still justified in the interests of the environment, as long claimed?

They are an impediment to the EU's internal market in the food/drink sector.

My new article (open access) in @recieljournal.bsky.social

doi.org/10.1111/reel...

#EUlaw

Liberty Media (commercial rights holder of Formula One, motorcar racing) wants to now acquire the commercial rights of MotoGP, motorcycle racing.

The Commission is concerned this will lead to over-concentrated in the motorsport broadcasting market.

Today's OJ: eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-conten...

Conference and Essays in Honour of Advocate General Eleanor Sharpston.

Kudos to Catherine Barnard, Adam Lazowski, and Daniel Sarmiento for the organisation and hosting at Trinity College, University of Cambridge, this week.

The book is here: www.bloomsbury.com/uk/pursuit-o...

I’ll have something up as soon as my teaching for the week is done

Reposted by Graham Butler

European (non-EU) international administrative tribunals of international organisations.

On the ECMWF Appeals Board and and the broader development of international administrative law.

I have a new article in the Journal of International Dispute Settlement: doi.org/10.1093/jnli...

Reposted by Graham Butler

Judgment by the Grand Chamber of the CJEU in Case C-551/21, Commission v Council (Gabon) today.

Big win for the Commission.

For almost all international agreements (ex. CFSP matters, it is 'it' that signs the treaty (para. 81), and not the Council.

curia.europa.eu/juris/fiche....
CURIA - Case information
curia.europa.eu

There are good days.
There are great days.
And there are days when an article is accepted by the Common Market Law Review.

@drjohncotter.bsky.social & @grahambutler.bsky.social, "The President of the European Commission and the Power to Request a Commissioner’s Resignation", CMLRev, Vol. 60 (2024).

Is a CFSP Common Position 'binding'?

Denmark has changed it view.

Today's Information newspaper: "Civil service misunderstood arms exports rules and misinformed parliament" (Embedsværket misforstod regler for våbeneksport og fejlinformerede Folketinget).

www.information.dk/indland/2024...
Embedsværket misforstod regler for våbeneksport og fejlinformerede Folketinget
De europæiske regler for våbeneksport er juridisk bindende for Danmark, erkender ministerier – efter tidligere at have påstået det modsatte.
www.information.dk

Of course :-) Still getting used to this and Threads!

Hope the storm didn’t disrupt the departure.

Reposted by Graham Butler

Today, we celebrated the PhD defense of Christian Thorning, welcoming ‘highly learned opponents’ from @grahambutler.bsky.social Ulla Neergard and others.

Congrats to the new doctor! Proposition no. 7 will definitely be worth considering for the next writing crisis!

Can an Member State national/Union citizen (not a third country national) have restrictive measures (sanctions) imposed on them?

No clear answer yet.

But today's judgment in Case T-313/22, Abramovich (paras. 163-164) appears to say yes:

curia.europa.eu/juris/fiche....
CURIA - Case information
curia.europa.eu

Judgment of the General Court in Case T‑233/22, Islentyeva v Council today

A dual Lux-Russian national holding a Lux private pilots license loses the case.

But at the same time, clarifies that Lux is wrongly interpreting the CFSP sanctions (and she can still fly).

curia.europa.eu/juris/fiche....
CURIA - Case information
curia.europa.eu

Reposted by Graham Butler

Really interesting oral hearing two weeks ago (was streamed online) but regrettably not available for subsequent consultation.

I’ll DM you on the former place.

Reposted by Merijn Chamon

Major CFSP case.

Joined Cases C-29/22 P and C-44/22 P, KS and KD v Council and Others.

Opinion of AG Ćapeta delivered this morning:

The CJEU has jurisdiction to hear an action for damages brought by individuals within the CFSP.

curia.europa.eu/juris/fiche....

#EUlaw #CJEU #CFSP