Globalisation & Law Network seminar with Giuseppe Martinico

On 23 October 2025, the Globalisation & Law Network reconvened for the first seminar of the academic year 2025 - 2026. Together with the Maastricht Centre for Law & Jurisprudence, we had the pleasure of welcoming Giuseppe Martinico is a Full Professor of Comparative Public Law at the Sant'Anna School of Advanced Studies, Pisa. Professor Martinico presented insights from his forthcoming book The Eurosceptic Mobilisation of Constitutional Law (Oxford University Press, 2026), co-authored with Dr Pablo Castillo-Ortiz (University of Sheffield). Massimo Fichera served as a discussant.

In his talk, Professor Martinico explored the interplay between populism, the principle of primacy, and the values of the EU. He put a spotlight on the emergence of populist governments and movements which, instead of advocating for a withdrawal from the EU, seek to drive internal disintegration by reinterpreting or denying the binding nature of EU obligations and resisting the authority of the Court of Justice of the EU. This novel form of mobilisation occurs at the theoretical-constitutional level as well as through judicial and party politics. According to Professor Martinico, the current efforts to reinterpret key legal concepts, such as democratic legitimacy, sovereignty and constitutional identity, the foundational unity and stability of the EU legal order.

The Globalisation & Law Network thanks Professor Martinico for sharing his fascinating research and for sparking a lively discussion among our members.

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