Fundamental Misconceptions About Fundamental Rights: The Changing Nature of Women's Rights in the EEC and Their Application in the United Kingdom

This article discusses the case of Defrenne v. Sabena Airlines III in which the European Court of Justice (ECJ) proclaimed that the elimination of discrimination based on sex is a fundamental right. This comment argues that the sweeping proclamation of the ECJ ignores the complex nature of the right of sexual equality and that the Court considers sexual equality a fundamental right only in a few limited situations. The article explores the formulation of the right of sexual equality, the application of this right by both the ECJ and by the courts and tribunals of the United Kingdom, and the prospects for a right of sexual equality under European law. The first section provides brief background material on fundamental rights and sex discrimination measures in the European Economic Community (EEC) and establishes that the ECJ recognizes the fundamental right of sexual equality. Subsequent sections challenge whether such a broadly formulated right actually exists within EEC law. [Descriptors: Applying Human Rights Law - Regional, International - Europe]