OVERVIEW

The Course “EU law and international trade relations” aims to reconstruct and systematise the rules that, in the European Union (EU), regulate trade with non-EU states and then investigate, in practice, their impact on the activities of Italian companies that engage in transnational trade relations. Object of study are therefore the issues, of a markedly operational nature, concerning: (i) the identification of companies falling within the scope of application of the EU rules on transnational trade; (ii) the determination of the obligations that these rules entail for the companies concerned; (iii) the possible impact of those rules on the contracts of the companies; (iv) the mechanisms for the ‘enforcement’ of those rules; (v) the consequences for companies that do not comply with them and (vi) the protection of companies that, on the other hand, suffer their violation or wish to contest their legality.

AIMS AND CONTENT

LEARNING OUTCOMES

Mod. 1 - European Union and rules on international trade: overview, analysis and systematisation of the sources of international, EU, state and non-state law that, in the EU, govern trade relations (including trade in services and investment) between the EU and non-member states, through the case law developed in this regard, especially by the Court of Justice of the EU.

Mod. 2 - Italian companies and transnational business relations under the test of EU law: examination and discussion of the impact on Italian companies with cross-border trade relations, inside and outside the EU, of the applicable rules, for example, on duties and other import/export restrictions, certification of origin of goods and compliance of goods from foreign countries with internal market rules for intra-EU movement, foreign investment control, economic ‘sanctions’ (including ‘secondary’ sanctions), corporate due diligence for sustainability purposes, climate neutrality and green transition.

AIMS AND LEARNING OUTCOMES

The first part of the course on ‘European Union law and international trade relations’ aims to review, analyse and systematise the rules that, in the EU, govern trade relations, including trade in services and investments, between the Union and third states, and thus
- the sources of international law, EU law, state and non-state law,
- their subjective and material scope of application,
- their effects and mutual relations,
widely relying in this respect on the jurisprudence developed especially by the Court of Justice of the EU.

Among these sources, specific emphasis will be given, as far as international law is concerned, to the main aspects of the regulatory system set up by the World Trade Organisation (WTO) and then to the Union's participation in it; as far as EU law is concerned, the agreements, especially the latest generation of economic partnership agreements, that the EU (in the face of the crisis of the WTO system and in order to guarantee the liberalisation of international trade on an equal footing with non-EU operators) concludes with third countries, and which are characterised by the fact that they also contain clauses on ‘non-trade issues’ relating, for example, to sustainable development (in terms of environmental protection and decent working conditions), as well as unilateral measures taken by the Union to protect, inter alia, the competitiveness of EU companies and the essential interests of its Member States.

The second part of the Course, of a more practical character, intends to examine - using concrete cases drawn from the Italian entrepreneurial/industrial reality - the effects/impact of the sources thus reconstructed on international trade contracts, and therefore on trade relations between transnational companies; thus, in particular and in operational terms, the implications for Italian companies that have cross-border trade relations, inside and outside the EU, of the rules applicable, for example, on
- of duties and other import and export restrictions;
- certification of origin of goods and compliance of goods coming from foreign countries with internal market rules for intra-EU circulation,
- of control of foreign investments,
- of economic ‘sanctions’ (including ‘secondary’ sanctions),
- of corporate due diligence for the purposes of sustainability, climate neutrality and green transition.

In this regard, the Course will deal with the obligations that the rules in question entail for the undertakings falling within their scope of application, the impact that these rules may have on the contractual relations of the undertakings concerned, the consequences to which these undertakings are exposed if they violate them, and the remedies that they may activate if they suffer their violation or if they wish to contest their validity.

Individual study, attendance and participation in the activities proposed in class will enable students to
- Know, distinguish and remember the sources and the main regulatory instruments that, in the EU legal system, preside over the regulation of trade relations between the Union and third States;
- Understand the scope and effects, depending on the source, of the rules in force in the EU on transnational trade and develop the ability to define their operational scope and reciprocal relations, reinforcing the knowledge of the relevant case law, especially of the EU Court of Justice;
- Recognise, classify and understand existing EU rules on international trade that are addressed to enterprises established in the Member States;
- Frame and distinguish the operations of such companies under the rules governing international trade in the EU, identify the underlying legal issues and trace the appropriate regulatory solution;
- Determine the obligations that compliance with these rules entails for the enterprises concerned, especially when they require the drafting of specific contractual clauses in relations with trading partners;
- Know the properties, functioning and criticality of public and private enforcement mechanisms of the rules applicable to transnational corporations;
- Research the sources that, in the EU legal system, govern transnational commercial relations as well as the case law, especially of the Court of Justice of the Union, relevant to the matter;
- Express oneself in appropriate technical language, both orally and in writing, on matters of international trade law.

PREREQUISITES

A fruitful study of the topics covered in the course presupposes knowledge of the basics of constitutional law, international law, European Union law and substantive private law.

TEACHING METHODS

The Course is composed of 36 hours of lectures (equal to 6 CFUs) taught by the teacher mainly through exercises and ‘laboratories’ consisting in the presentation and interactive discussion in class, on a voluntary basis, of (i) cases decided by the case law of the Court of Justice of the EU, by international arbitration courts and national courts or (ii) of issues drawn from the Italian business/industrial reality that can be related to the body of EU law, and to the related enforcement practice, on international trade issues in order to identify their possible concrete solution. The prepared and active participation of students in such activities of presentation and oral discussion of cases is therefore strongly encouraged and positively valued.
Due to the seminar nature of the teaching, lectures will be conducted with the aid of teaching materials that the teacher will make available on the University webpage www.aulaweb.unige.it. For a better organisation of the teaching activity, students are therefore requested to register on the teaching website as soon as possible. In order to allow for the aforementioned oral discussion of cases, the lecture calendar will be communicated in advance, together with the reference documents available on the aforementioned University webpage.
In the case of distance learning, lectures will be held on the ‘Microsoft teams’ platform, according to the instructions that will be communicated by the teacher.

SYLLABUS/CONTENT

The first part of the Course aims to overview, analyse and systematise the rules that, in the EU, govern trade relations, including trade in services and investments, between the EU and third states: and thus, the sources of international law, EU law, state and non-state law, their subjective and material scope of application, their effects and their mutual relations, making extensive use to this end of the case law developed in this regard, especially by the Court of Justice of the EU; among these sources, specific emphasis will be given, as far as international law is concerned, to the main aspects of the regulatory system established by the WTO and then to the participation of the Union in it; as regards EU law, to the agreements, especially the latest generation of economic partnership agreements, which the EU (in the face of the crisis in the WTO system and in order to ensure the liberalisation of international trade on an equal footing with non-EU operators) concludes with third countries and which are characterised by the fact that they also contain clauses relating to non-trade issues and concerning, for example, sustainable development (in terms of environmental protection and decent working conditions), as well as unilateral measures taken by the Union to protect, inter alia, the competitiveness of EU companies and the essential interests of its Member States.

The second part of the Course, with a more practical approach, intends to examine - using concrete cases drawn from the Italian entrepreneurial/industrial reality - the repercussions/impact of the sources thus reconstructed on international trade contracts, and therefore on trade relations between transnational companies; thus, in particular and in operational terms, the implications for Italian companies having cross-border trade relations, inside and outside the EU, of the rules applicable, for example, on duties and other import/export restrictive measures, certification of origin of goods and compliance of goods coming from foreign countries with the rules of the internal market for the purposes of intra-EU circulation, on the control of foreign investments, on economic ‘sanctions’ (including ‘secondary’ ones), on corporate due diligence for the purposes of sustainability, climate neutrality and green transition. In this sense, the Course will deal with the obligations that these rules entail for companies falling within their scope of application, the impact that these rules may have on the contractual relations of the companies concerned, the consequences that these companies are exposed to if they violate them, as well as the remedies that they may activate if they suffer their violation or if they wish to challenge their legality.

RECOMMENDED READING/BIBLIOGRAPHY

Textbooks and reading materials for attending students.

The teaching material (academic articles, regulatory instruments and case law) will be available on the University portal www.aulaweb.unige.it. As a reference textbook, however: F. MARRELLA, Diritto del commercio internazionale, III ed., Milano, 2023, limited to "Capitolo Primo" (“Introduzione”) and to the entire "Parte Prima" ("Capitolo Secondo" and "Capitolo Terzo" in full). The programme consists, for a total of 6 credits, of approximately 300 pages.

Textbooks and reading materials for non attending students.

F. MARRELLA, Diritto del commercio internazionale, III ed., Milano, 2023, limited to "Capitolo Primo" (“Introduzione”), the entire "Parte Prima" ("Capitolo Secondo" and "Capitolo Terzo" in full), "Capitolo Quindicesimo" ("Parte Seconda"), "Capitolo Sedicesimo" and "Capitolo Diciassettesimo" ("Parte Terza"). The programme consists, for a total of 6 credits, of approximately 360 pages.

TEACHERS AND EXAM BOARD

LESSONS

LESSONS START

Second semester: February - May 2026

The class calendar and timetable will be available on the Portale EasyAcademy

Class schedule

The timetable for this course is available here: Portale EasyAcademy

EXAMS

EXAM DESCRIPTION

The exam is oral, consists of at least two open questions relating to the Course's syllabus and lasts no less than fifteen minutes. The questioning is always conducted by the teacher in charge of the Course as well as by another tenured lecturer (i.e. a research fellow with at least three years' postgraduate research experience). In order to take the exam, the student is required to register online for the chosen exam roll call. It is strongly recommended that students cancel their registration if they choose not to take the exam.

Attending students will be offered the opportunity to take a final exam during the last week of classes or the week immediately following. The final exam for attending students, always conducted by the teacher with the assistance of another tenured teacher (or a research fellow with at least three years' postgraduate research experience), covers the topics dealt with during the cycle of lectures and, for the purposes of assessment, the teacher determines the criteria for awarding marks that take into account, among other things, the quality of the candidates' participation in the exercises/activities carried out in class as well as the difficulty of the issues addressed. Further information on how the final examination will be conducted will be provided in class during the first week of lessons.

ASSESSMENT METHODS

The exam, as already indicated in the oral form, normally consists of at least two open questions on topics representative of the entire Course's syllabus. The final exam for attending students consists of open-ended questions on the topics covered and discussed in class. Further information on how the final examination for attending students is to be conducted will be provided in class during the first week of lessons.

Both in the final exam reserved to attending students and in the oral exam open to all those enrolled in the Course, the questions asked will be aimed at ascertaining the candidate's actual knowledge of (i) the rules that, in the EU, govern trade relations, including trade in services and investments, between the EU and third countries and (ii) the implications for Italian companies that have cross-border trade relations, inside and outside the EU, of the applicable rules, for example, on duties and other restrictive import/export measures, certification of origin of goods and compliance of goods coming from foreign countries with the rules of the internal market for the purposes of intra-EU circulation, on the control of foreign investments, on economic ‘sanctions’ (including ‘secondary’ ones), on corporate due diligence for sustainability purposes, on climate neutrality and green transition. In addition to the knowledge and mastery of the contents of the teaching programme, the quality of exposition, the appropriate use of specialised technical language, the ability to analyse and critically reason will be an assessment parameter.

Students who have valid certification of disability or Specific Learning Desorders (SLD) on file with the University may request the use of compensatory measures during the exams (e.g. additional time, concept maps, modifications in the written/oral mode), following the guidelines (p. 5) published here. In any case, for further information, please contact the Department’s disability liaison: Isa.Fanlo@unige.it

FURTHER INFORMATION

All further information regarding the Course will be provided in class by the teacher during the first week of lessons and in any case made available on the page dedicated to the course on the University portal www.aulaweb.unige.it. Communications to students are made via the forum on the same page.