Uploaded June 2025 | Updated September 2026, 1 week ago
On Wednesday 4 June 2025 a panel of leading experts came together at UCL Faculty of Laws (Bentham House) to debate the EU citizenship law after the groundbreaking CJEU judgment of European Commission v Malta.
About the discussion
The recent judgment of the Court of Justice of the EU in Commission v Malta has generated plenty of controversy. The Court held that Malta’s investor citizenship scheme, which granted Maltese nationality in exchange for investment, was contrary to EU law - ruling that it was incompatible with the 'special relationship of solidarity and good faith' between Member States and their nationals that should form the basis of EU citizenship. The Court's reasoning has been attacked for overextending the scope of EU law - and for requiring an overly 'thick' and potentially exclusionary bond to exist between citizens and a state. Others have defended the Court's approach, precisely because of the importance it places on such bonds of 'solidarity'. A panel of leading experts will discuss these issues in depth.
The Speakers:
- Dr Lior Erez, University of Oxford
- Dr Sarah Ganty, UCLouvain/Yale
- Dr Oliver Gerstenberg, UCL Faculty of Laws
- Prof Dimitry Kochenov, Central European University
- Dr Madeleine Sumption, University of Oxford
Chair: Dr Claudia Sternberg (UCL European Institute)
On Wednesday 4 June 2025 a panel of leading experts came together at UCL Faculty of Laws (Bentham House) to debate the EU citizenship law after the groundbreaking CJEU judgment of European Commission v Malta.
About the discussion
The recent judgment of the Court of Justice of the EU in Commission v Malta has generated plenty of controversy. The Court held that Malta’s investor citizenship scheme, which granted Maltese nationality in exchange for investment, was contrary to EU law - ruling that it was incompatible with the 'special relationship of solidarity and good faith' between Member States and their nationals that should form the basis of EU citizenship. The Court's reasoning has been attacked for overextending the scope of EU law - and for requiring an overly 'thick' and potentially exclusionary bond to exist between citizens and a state. Others have defended the Court's approach, precisely because of the importance it places on such bonds of 'solidarity'. A panel of leading experts will discuss these issues in depth.
The Speakers:
- Dr Lior Erez, University of Oxford
- Dr Sarah Ganty, UCLouvain/Yale
- Dr Oliver Gerstenberg, UCL Faculty of Laws
- Prof Dimitry Kochenov, Central European University
- Dr Madeleine Sumption, University of Oxford
Chair: Dr Claudia Sternberg (UCL European Institute)
