With or Without You. Thoughts on Brexit and European Private Law

In the aftermath of the Brexit, the paper first takes a critical look on the role played by European legal elites in the process of Europeanisation of private law. The paper argues that such a process has been driven without having much regard for its impact on domestic legal environments’, neglecting lawyers, notaries and judges’ discursive reactions in the Member States. It also briefly discusses the legacy of English Common Law. In conclusion, the paper makes a case for reorienting the study of law in the EU away from legal positivism and towards methodology, away from legal rules and towards principles and shared values, in the hope of developing a more respectful and inclusive approach to our national legal cultures and identities.