Immanent Critique in EU Law

• Max Weber Programme for Postdoctoral Studies

This event features presentations by Päivi Neuvonen (Durham University) and Paul Linden-Retek (University at Buffalo School of Law) on their forthcoming edited volume 'Critical Theory and EU law', followed by a discussion with Ivana Isailovic (University of Amsterdam) about the role and life of critical legal scholars.

This Masterclass examines the method of immanent critique and its potential applications in the context of European Union law. The goal of this event is to reveal unarticulated assumptions and presuppositions in EU law and reflect on methodological choices in legal research. The starting point of our discussion is that the method of immanent critique is of particular relevance in the present moment. Legal scholars increasingly deploy empirical methods to remedy what has been called the ‘reality deficit’ of EU law. This term expresses the realisation that social practices often do not conform to the beliefs and assumptions that underpin the concepts legal scholars rely on. There is thus a need for new concepts, questioning protocols, and methodological tools that reframe the normative order and account for neglected social realities. More specifically, what the field of EU legal studies calls for is a social theory that renders the societal relationships, conflicts, and contradictions within the European Union intelligible.

The event also provides the opportunity for selected PhD candidates and Early Career Scholars to discuss the methods informing their own research.