Free Trade Agreement between the EU and Singapore does not completely fall within the exclusive competence of the EU

FREE TRADE

The Free Trade Agreement between the European Union and the Republic of Singapore does not completely fall within the exclusive competence of the European Union

"305. It follows from all the foregoing considerations that the envisaged agreement falls within the exclusive competence of the European Union, with the exception of the following provisions, which fall within a competence shared between the European Union and the Member States:
– the provisions of Section A (Investment Protection) of Chapter 9 (Investment) of that agreement, in so far as they relate to non-direct investment between the European Union and the Republic of Singapore;
– the provisions of Section B (Investor-State Dispute Settlement) of Chapter 9; and
– the provisions of Chapters 1 (Objectives and General Definitions), 14 (Transparency), 15 (Dispute Settlement between the Parties), 16 (Mediation Mechanism) and 17 (Institutional, General and Final Provisions) of that agreement, in so far as those provisions relate to the provisions of Chapter 9 and to the extent that the latter fall within a competence shared between the European Union and the Member States.
Consequently, the Court (Full Court) gives the following Opinion:
The Free Trade Agreement between the European Union and the Republic of Singapore falls within the exclusive competence of the European Union, with the exception of the following provisions, which fall within a competence shared between the European Union and the Member States:
– the provisions of Section A (Investment Protection) of Chapter 9 (Investment) of that agreement, in so far as they relate to non-direct investment between the European Union and the Republic of Singapore;
– the provisions of Section B (Investor-State Dispute Settlement) of Chapter 9; and
– the provisions of Chapters 1 (Objectives and General Definitions), 14 (Transparency), 15 (Dispute Settlement between the Parties), 16 (Mediation Mechanism) and 17 (Institutional, General and Final Provisions) of that agreement, in so far as those provisions relate to the provisions of Chapter 9 and to the extent that the latter fall within a competence shared between the European Union and the Member States."

IPPT20170516, CJEU, Opinion Free Trade Agreement EU and Singapore

C-2/15 - ECLI:EU:C:2017:376