National Identity and Judicial Minimalism: Exploring The Cjeu’s Restraint in Adjudicating National Identity

Summary Even thought the Court of Justice of the EU has already decided a number of cases dealing with national identity, judicial clarification of the concept is still missing. On the contrary, the reasoning employed in the Court’s case-law leaves a lot to be desired. This article explores the reasons that lead the Court to underarticulating its decisions in identity cases. I argue that the Court’s minimalism in adjudicating national identity is rooted not only in reasons driving the Court’s general minimalist approach, but also in considerations specific to identity cases. These reasons include the national identity’s inherent potential to hinder European integration, the sensitivity of determining the content of Member States’ national identities by a supranational court, the attempts to obscure the Court’s receptivity of identity arguments, and the potential to widen the applicability of its identity rulings.