The European Council in the institutional framework of the European Union after the Lisbon Treaty

Abstract

The European Council is one of the institutions of the European Union which, due to its composition and decision-making methods, has been under intense public scrutiny since the entry into force of the Treaty of Lisbon. As a higher political body of the Union and an institution without legislative competences, since its inception until today, it has evolved into a place where the member states at the highest level agree, negotiate and more often exceed the legal framework in which they should act. Established in the mid-70s of the last century as an institution for political guidance of the future development of the Community, and later of the Union through strategic guidelines and conclusions of the presidents of states and governments, the European Council, during the 15 years of implementation of the Treaty of Lisbon, has grown into an executive body par excellence. The political weight of decisions made by the European Council, especially in crisis situations, affects the institutional balance, that is, an imbalance that is increasingly leaning towards the decisive role of the politics and interests of member states at the expense of supranational institutions and respect for the rights of the European Union.