EU Language Law

Language Law of the European Union gives a comprehensive account of all language regulations and arrangements which currently exist in EU law. First and foremost, it covers the various explicit and implicit language regimes of EU institutions, bodies and agencies, explaining how and why they came about. It also explores numerous other EU language provisions in the area of freedom, security and justice, relating to quite diverse topics such as road traffic offences, recognition of national court decisions, the European Arrest Warrant and crime victims. It also discusses EU linguistic provisions in the internal market regarding product labelling or the language proficiency assessment of professionals such as medical doctors or lawyers seeking to provide services in other EU Member States. Many other issues such as language testing for newcomers in society and language proficiency requirements for employment are investigated. This book highlights an often neglected, yet tremendously important aspect of EU integration: the language issue.

Stefaan van der Jeught works as an official in the Directorate Communication of the European Court of Justice and is affiliated to the Centre for European Law of the Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB). In 2015, he earned a PhD at that University with a dissertation on “Conflicting Language Policies in the European Union and its Member States”.