Helen Xanthaki – författare

Legislation has traditionally been viewed as a text addressed to and used by lawyers and judges. But with enhanced accessibility via electronic publication of legislation in many Commonwealth jurisdictions, drafters "speak" not only to lawyers and judges, but also to untrained users. This shift of the legislative audience has changed radically the requirements for legislation and its drafting. This is crucially important as the quality of legislation within the Commonwealth remains an essential element of democracy and the rule of law. The book aims to alert policy officers, legal officers, law reformers, and drafters of the many innovations in the drafting of legislation within the Commonwealth. And ultimately to bring to light the academic foundations of the modern approach to legislative quality, which really boils down to effectiveness of the legislative product.This book was based on a special issue of Commonwealth Law Bulletin.

The success of the four core freedoms of the EU has created fertile ground for transnational organised crime. Innovative, transnational legal weapons are therefore required by national authorities. The availability of data on criminal convictions is at the forefront of the debate. But which mechanism for availability can be used effectively while at the same time respecting an increasingly higher level of data protection at national level? In the fluid, post-'Reform Treaty' environment, the EU is moving towards the creation of a European Criminal Record which will ultimately secure availability of criminal data beyond the weaknesses of Mutual Legal Assistance mechanisms. Examining the concept of a European Criminal Record in its legal, political and data protection dimensions, this multidisciplinary study is an indispensable exploration of a major initiative in European Criminal Law which is set to monopolise the debate on EU judicial co-operation and enforcement.

Drafting Legislation sets out to prove Sir William Dale's doctrine that the rules for drafting good quality legislation are the same in common and civil systems of law. Legislative solutions can therefore serve the drafter, the judge and the practitioner of any jurisdiction. The book discusses the general issue of quality in legislation from the legislative process to the actual drafting interpretation and enforcement. It also analyzes topics related to quality in legislation such as clarity, precision and disambiguity, plain language and gender-neutral language and assesses whether Sir William's view of universality in the definition and elements of quality in legislation is right or not. The volume is of critical interest to students and scholars of European law and the philosophy and theory of law.

This collection teaches us how language and legislation interact to produce effective laws. It brings linguistics, lawyers, theory, and practices together to show how linguistic tools, concepts, and methodologies can be applied to improve the law’s clarity, transparency, and efficiency, thus widening its social reach.Drawing on case studies across Europe, chapters critically reflect on the dynamics of legislative drafting and the dissemination of legislation and the ways in which drafted legislation both creates laws and serves to communicate their meaning. This volume features perspectives from national and transnational examples to demonstrate the impact of varied stakeholders—legislative bodies, law interpreters, and law enforcers—on the implementation of legislation, particularly when legislative texts are translated and interpreted across different settings. Through the lens of discourse analysis, legislative texts are analyzed in lexico‑grammatical and textual terms, highlighting the disparity between what is conceived and what might be expressed clearly in words and how this knowledge can inform better drafting practices. This collection charts a way forward for linguistics as a discipline to contribute to a better understanding of the nuances around effective legislative expression.This book will appeal to scholars and stakeholders working at the intersection of language and the law, in such fields as applied linguistics, forensic linguistics, regulation, legislation, and legislative drafting.

The success of the four core freedoms of the EU has created fertile ground for transnational organised crime. Innovative, transnational legal weapons are therefore required by national authorities. The availability of data on criminal convictions is at the forefront of the debate. But which mechanism for availability can be used effectively while at the same time respecting an increasingly higher level of data protection at national level? In the fluid, post-'Reform Treaty' environment, the EU is moving towards the creation of a European Criminal Record which will ultimately secure availability of criminal data beyond the weaknesses of Mutual Legal Assistance mechanisms. Examining the concept of a European Criminal Record in its legal, political and data protection dimensions, this multidisciplinary study is an indispensable exploration of a major initiative in European Criminal Law which is set to monopolise the debate on EU judicial co-operation and enforcement.

Drafting Legislation sets out to prove Sir William Dale's doctrine that the rules for drafting good quality legislation are the same in common and civil systems of law. Legislative solutions can therefore serve the drafter, the judge and the practitioner of any jurisdiction. The book discusses the general issue of quality in legislation from the legislative process to the actual drafting interpretation and enforcement. It also analyzes topics related to quality in legislation such as clarity, precision and disambiguity, plain language and gender-neutral language and assesses whether Sir William's view of universality in the definition and elements of quality in legislation is right or not. The volume is of critical interest to students and scholars of European law and the philosophy and theory of law.

First published in 1997. Article 224 is one of the most powerful Articles of the Treaty of Rome, allowing a member state to take unilateral measures and to suspend some or all its Treaty-based obligations in times of what can loosely be described as serious internal turmoil or external threat. It is for this reason that the very next Article of the Treaty, Article 225, allows the Commission or a member state to challenge invocation of Art.224, before the European Court of Justice (ECJ), on grounds of improper use. In practice, the use of Art.224, by a member state presents multiple problems. The obvious connection with defence and security issues has inhibited the ECJ which still has not given and authentic interpretation of this Article. As the recent former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) cases (Greek referral for the embargo on FYROM) indicate, unless the use of Art.224 is blatantly flippant, the ECJ is not in a position to challenge a member state’s unilateral measures.

First published in 1997. Article 224 is one of the most powerful Articles of the Treaty of Rome, allowing a member state to take unilateral measures and to suspend some or all its Treaty-based obligations in times of what can loosely be described as serious internal turmoil or external threat. It is for this reason that the very next Article of the Treaty, Article 225, allows the Commission or a member state to challenge invocation of Art.224, before the European Court of Justice (ECJ), on grounds of improper use. In practice, the use of Art.224, by a member state presents multiple problems. The obvious connection with defence and security issues has inhibited the ECJ which still has not given and authentic interpretation of this Article. As the recent former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) cases (Greek referral for the embargo on FYROM) indicate, unless the use of Art.224 is blatantly flippant, the ECJ is not in a position to challenge a member state’s unilateral measures.

Legislation has traditionally been viewed as a text addressed to and used by lawyers and judges. But with enhanced accessibility via electronic publication of legislation in many Commonwealth jurisdictions, drafters "speak" not only to lawyers and judges, but also to untrained users. This shift of the legislative audience has changed radically the requirements for legislation and its drafting. This is crucially important as the quality of legislation within the Commonwealth remains an essential element of democracy and the rule of law. The book aims to alert policy officers, legal officers, law reformers, and drafters of the many innovations in the drafting of legislation within the Commonwealth. And ultimately to bring to light the academic foundations of the modern approach to legislative quality, which really boils down to effectiveness of the legislative product.This book was based on a special issue of Commonwealth Law Bulletin.

This book provides a practical handbook for legislation. Written by a team of experts, practitioners and scholars, it invites national institutions to apply its teachings in the context of their own drafting manuals and laws. Analysis focuses on general principles and best practice within the context of the different systems of government in Europe. Questions explored include subsidiarity, legitimacy, efficacy, effectiveness, efficiency, proportionality, monitoring and regulatory impact assessment. Taking a practical approach which starts from evidence-based rationality, it represents essential reading for all practitioners in the field of legislative drafting.

"...the uber-manual of all legislative drafting manuals" Statute Law Review, 2023, 44If you’re involved in drafting or amending legislation in the Commonwealth, the EU or beyond, you need a guide that will help you with both the traditional and modern techniques of drafting good quality statutory law.Thornton’s Legislative Drafting is recognised as the leading professional title in this area, used and referred to by legal officers and drafters internationally.Completely refreshed and updated, the new sixth edition includes full coverage of contemporary drafting developments and advances.Fully updated and alongside the detailed, learned and professional guidance and examples of best, and bad, practice, the new 6th edition includes new chapters on:- Legislation as a Tool for Regulation- Transposition of EU Legislation- Pre- and post-legislative scrutiny: the lifecycle of legislationThornton's Legislative Drafting helps the reader to:- Identify the aim of legislation as one of the regulatory tools- Align their concept of legislative quality with that of effectiveness of legislation- Use effectiveness as the criterion for resolving drafting dilemmas- Apply the effectiveness doctrine to all aspects of legislative drafting- Earn exposure to examples of best and bad practice drawn from a plethora of jurisdictions- Earn awareness of best practice in aspects of legislative drafting worldwide- Understand the “why” behind legislative conventions, thus becoming equipped with the tools for their application in practice.

Legislative Drafting for the EU calls for reform in the design of EU legislation to bolster its strength in political, social, and economic spheres. The book offers technical guidance on how to achieve such reform through drafting, and underlines the importance of accessible communication to create collective ownership of the regulatory aims.This innovative book reveals the weaknesses in the current drafting of EU law and recommends concrete changes for these regulations and directives in order to aid transposition. Highlighting the importance of drafting techniques, Helen Xanthaki offers an insightful analysis of EU legislation and emphasises the benefit of citizen-centred law-making in sustaining loyalty and trust in the EU. The author explores how reform is necessary to reflect the current usage of EU legislative expressions as the final legislative text for regulation, both at supranational and national levels. Considering the best ways to aid this reform, the book discusses legislative effectiveness and regulatory efficacy, Thornton’s methodology, and the use of easified and gender inclusive language to achieve clarity, precision, and unambiguity.Providing an incisive examination of EU legislative drafting and its implications for the member states, this thought-provoking book is a crucial read for scholars of European law, legislative drafting, regulation, and EU studies.

The authors offer many insights into the regulatory, operational and institutional opportunities and challenges for OLAF, the European Commission's Anti-Fraud Office. Since OLAF was set up in 1999, significant changes in its functional environment have taken place including in EU criminal law and especially in mutual assistance and substantive criminal law; the reconstruction of Eurojust and Europol through recent Regulations and Memoranda of Cooperation; and the entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty.The authors advance the view that OLAF's current legal framework must address these issues adequately.The approach they take is multi-disciplinary. OLAF is examined here through the prisms of EU politics and national, European and (to some extent) comparative law, focusing not only on the identification of current problems in regulation and procedure but also on its positioning within the context of European integration. Operational issues are then extensively discussed, making this a book for practitioners as well as policy makers and academics.The book addresses the theoretical and practical aspects of anti-fraud actions within both criminal and civil aspects of public law. Although OLAF works within an incomplete EU legal framework and with varying cooperation by national authorities, its staff have devised mechanisms that address some of these issues. Nevertheless, rules covering procedural and operational issues will need to be safeguarded within future legislation.