ABSTRACT
The Treaties are the most significant source of European Union (EU) law and primary legislation, which is the equivalent to a constitution and why they are also referred to as 'the founding Treaties'. As the Community expanded and the Union was created, a number of related Treaties have been introduced. 'To exercise the Union's competences, the institutions shall adopt regulations, directives, decisions, recommendations and opinions.' 'Secondary legislation' is a collective term that is used to describe all of the various types of law that the institutions can make and the legal instruments which they can use to regulate the policy areas within the competence of the EU. There was nothing in the original Treaties that directed the European Court of Justice to apply general principles of law in deciding cases. Some of the principles have their origins in United Kingdom law. The main ones are: proportionality; equality; legal certainty; natural justice; the protection of fundamental human rights and subsidiarity.
