4. Mobility
Cross-border cooperation and mobility
Some of the main priorities of the European Union and other institutions relate to the mobility of persons, the provision of services, addressing crime and insecurity, promoting trade and sustainable development, taxation, the social security of cross-border workers, and protecting the environment. These priorities presuppose cooperation between public and private organisations across borders. This research stream investigates how such cooperation can lead not only to the integration, coordination, and harmonisation of legal and social orders, but also to tension, conflict, and disintegration, in light of differences in rules, jurisdictions, legal cultures and more.
Within this stream, several focal points can be identified. The first is the relationship between rules, regulations, and cross-border mobility at the national, European, and international level. This can lead, for example, to the study of cross-border regions as living labs of EU integration, to questions about the enforcement of cross-border cooperation and mobility, and to assessments of whether existing cross-border rules and activities are compliant with the rule of law.
The second focal point relates to the operations of various actors in a cross-border environment. It studies, for example, how multi-agency approaches between public-private actors are used to control crime through collaboration between police, municipalities, social services, and others. It also examines the effects of cross-border arrangements on nationality and family relationships, and how citizens are affected by differences in social security, labour, or tax regulations. Relevant economic questions include how companies take advantage of cross-border mobility and the broader impacts of their crossborder mergers, divisions, and seat transfers.
The third focus is concerned with the link between cross-border mobility and basic concepts and paradigms. It asks, for example, whether the idea of the nation state is eroding and if this is affecting cross-border dynamics, and whether migration flows and demographic changes affect matters of identity, citizenship, fundamental rights, international peace, and security.
Mobility - focal points
New forms of cooperation
Globalisation, the gradual erosion of the nation-state, migratory movements and demographic changes pose new challenges for research into the principles and enforcement of law at a national, European and international level. The interaction of the various systems inevitably leads to new forms of cooperation across regional national and European borders.
The recent migrant crisis raises many questions, including legal ones in relation to identity, citizenship, international peace and security, and the safeguarding of fundamental rights of both migrants and citizens of the EU-member states. However, the notion of crossing borders is not restricted to geographical borders and needs to be interpreted in a wider sense.
Horizontal form of governance
The concept is also related to interactions between various legal orders and disciplines. In the field of crime control for instance, a multi-agency, integrated approach is advocated in which a variety of public and private agencies (police, prosecution department, local governments, tax services, social services, migration services, insurance companies, healthcare, real estate agencies, banks, schools etc.) cooperate, share information and use different legal instruments.
Such a horizontal form of governance can be found in other areas as well (i.e. labour mobility, social security etc.). Of course, a relevant question in this respect is what the consequences are of the interaction between the various systems abiding by the rule of law.
Mixed-method approach
A growing number of national and international agencies are attempting to monitor and co-ordinate responses to contemporary problems. In many research areas, such as migration and development issues, citizenship, nationality and integration, international family relationships, social security, tax law, pensions and the prevention and repression of crime, researchers of various legal and other scientific disciplines are increasingly cooperating, using a mixed-method approach.
Doctrinal analysis and comparative legal research are being combined with other forms of empirical and interdisciplinary research.