Institutions of the European Union | OCR A-Level Law
For Specification H418
OCR A-Level Law | Free Revision Notes
Estimated study time: 35 minutes
Institutions of the European Union A-Level Law revision introduces the four EU institutions specifically required by OCR H418: the European Commission, European Parliament, Council of the European Union and Court of Justice of the European Union. OCR requires knowledge of their membership, roles and legal functions. This lesson provides the foundation for understanding EU legal sources [Sources of European Union law], the development of individual rights under EU law [EU law and individual rights] and the historical relationship between EU law and UK parliamentary sovereignty.
Learning Objectives 🎯
By the end of this revision page, you should be able to:
Identify the four European Union institutions required by OCR.
Explain the legal role of the European Commission at the level supported by the provided OCR materials.
Explain the legal role of the European Parliament at the level supported by the provided OCR materials.
Explain the legal role of the Council of the European Union at the level supported by the provided OCR materials.
Explain the role of the Court of Justice of the European Union in the development of EU law.
Explain how the institutions connect with the creation and operation of EU legal rules.
Revision Notes 📚
What does OCR require you to know?
The OCR H418 specification places this topic within European Union law in H418/02, Law making and the law of tort.
Students are specifically required to know the:
membership
role
legal functions
of four institutions:
European Commission
European Parliament
Council of the European Union
Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU)
OCR then requires study of treaties, regulations and directives and the impact of EU law on the law of England and Wales.
The four institutions at a glance
Institution | Role supported by the supplied OCR material |
European Commission | Participates with the Council and Parliament in the making of secondary EU law |
European Parliament | Participates with the Council and Commission in the making of secondary EU law |
Council of the European Union | Participates with the Commission and Parliament in the making of secondary EU law |
Court of Justice of the European Union | Develops EU legal principles and doctrines, including doctrines affecting individual rights |
This distinction is useful from the beginning.
The Commission, Parliament and Council are directly connected with the creation of EU secondary legislation in the supplied OCR materials.
The CJEU has a judicial role and is connected with the development and operation of EU legal principles.
The European Commission
The European Commission is one of the four institutions whose membership, role and legal functions OCR requires students to study.
Membership
OCR requires knowledge of the Commission's membership.
Legal role
The supplied OCR mark scheme identifies the Commission as one of the institutions involved in the creation of secondary EU law.
In particular, OCR states that regulations are made by the:
Council
Commission
Parliament
acting together.
The same three institutions are also identified as acting together in relation to directives.
This establishes an important legal function for examination purposes:
The European Commission participates in the EU law-making system that produces secondary EU legislation.
You will examine exactly what regulations and directives do in sources of EU law [Sources of European Union law].
The European Parliament
The European Parliament is another institution specifically named by OCR.
Legal role
The European Parliament participates in EU law making.
OCR's 2023 mark scheme identifies Parliament as acting with the Council and Commission in relation to the making of:
regulations
directives
under Article 288.
The key idea for this lesson is therefore that the European Parliament forms part of the institutional structure through which secondary EU rules are created.
Do not confuse the European Parliament with the UK Parliament. They are different institutions operating within different legal structures.
The Council of the European Union
The Council of the European Union is the third EU institution involved in the legislative relationship identified by OCR.
Legal role
The Council is identified alongside the Commission and European Parliament in the creation of EU secondary legislation.
OCR's mark scheme states that:
regulations are made by the Council, Commission and Parliament acting together
directives are made by the Council, Commission and Parliament acting together under Article 288
This makes the Council part of the EU's legislative structure.
A useful way to remember the relationship is:
Commission + Parliament + Council → involvement in secondary EU law
The exact characteristics of regulations and directives are studied separately in sources of European Union law [Sources of European Union law].
Do not confuse the Council with the European Parliament
Students need to keep the institutional names separate.
For OCR purposes, both the European Parliament and Council of the European Union are institutions involved in EU law making, but they are separately listed institutions whose membership, role and functions must be understood.
You should therefore avoid treating "Parliament", "Council" and "Commission" as interchangeable names for the same body.
A strong examination response should identify the institution accurately before explaining its function.
The Court of Justice of the European Union
The fourth institution required by OCR is the Court of Justice of the European Union, commonly abbreviated to CJEU.
Legal role
The specification directly identifies an important legal role performed by the CJEU.
OCR requires students to understand:
the extension of rights to individuals through doctrines developed by both the CJEU and domestic courts.
This shows that the CJEU contributes to the development of EU legal doctrines and principles, rather than merely participating in the legislative activity associated with the Commission, Parliament and Council.
This role is examined more fully in EU law and individual rights [EU law and individual rights].
The CJEU and the development of individual rights
The specification connects the CJEU specifically with doctrines that extended rights to individuals.
That gives the Court a different function from the institutions involved in producing regulations and directives.
A simple distinction is:
Institutional activity | Institutions identified by OCR |
Participation in creating regulations and directives | Commission, Parliament and Council |
Development of doctrines affecting individual rights | CJEU and domestic courts |
This division helps you organise your revision without confusing EU legislation with judicial development of EU law.
The actual doctrines and their effects belong to the next stages of your EU law study, particularly EU law and individual rights [EU law and individual rights].
How the institutions connect to EU sources of law
OCR divides the EU law topic into closely related areas.
First, you need to understand the institutions.
Then you study the main sources of European Union law:
treaties
regulations
directives
OCR's 2023 mark scheme describes treaties as primary sources of EU law, while regulations and directives are described as secondary sources.
This distinction provides context for the institutions.
Treaties
Treaties form the foundation of the legal structure being studied.
OCR identifies different types of treaty, including founding, accession and amending treaties. The detailed rules belong in sources of European Union law [Sources of European Union law].
Regulations
OCR identifies regulations as secondary sources of EU law and connects their creation with the:
Council
Commission
Parliament
acting together.
Directives
OCR also identifies directives as secondary sources created through the involvement of those institutions.
For this lesson, the important point is the institutional relationship rather than the detailed effect of regulations and directives.
Article 288
OCR's 2023 mark scheme refers to Article 288 when explaining regulations and directives.
It identifies regulations and directives as secondary EU sources made through the Council, Commission and Parliament acting together under that framework.
You do not need to turn this lesson into a detailed study of Article 288. Its relevance here is that it provides an example of how the legal functions of EU institutions connect with the sources of EU law.
Institutions and legal functions compared
Institution | Legal function supported by the supplied OCR materials | Linked OCR topic |
European Commission | Participates in the making of regulations and directives | Sources of EU law |
European Parliament | Participates in the making of regulations and directives | Sources of EU law |
Council of the European Union | Participates in the making of regulations and directives | Sources of EU law |
CJEU | Develops legal doctrines, including doctrines extending rights to individuals | EU law and individual rights |
This is the central distinction to remember from the material currently available.
Institutions and the historical impact of EU law on the UK
OCR does not stop at identifying EU institutions and sources.
The specification also requires students to understand:
the extension of rights to individuals through doctrines developed by the CJEU and domestic courts
the supremacy of EU law over domestic law of member states
the impact of that supremacy on the sovereignty of Parliament during the UK's membership of the European Union
You will study this historical constitutional relationship in supremacy and parliamentary sovereignty [Supremacy and parliamentary sovereignty].
This matters because the institutions in this lesson are not simply names to memorise. Their legal functions help explain how EU rules and principles were created and how those rules affected domestic law.
The institutions work within one EU legal system
A useful way to organise the topic is to see the institutions as having different but connected legal roles.
Legislative connection
The supplied OCR materials connect:
European Commission + European Parliament + Council of the European Union
with the creation of secondary EU law.
Judicial connection
The specification connects:
Court of Justice of the European Union
with the judicial development of EU principles and individual rights.
This prepares you for two different strands of later learning:
Institutions → Regulations and Directives[Sources of European Union law]
and
CJEU → Doctrines affecting individual rights[EU law and individual rights]
What should you learn for an OCR AO1 question?
The specification expressly requires membership, role and legal functions, so a full set of OCR-approved teaching materials would need to provide all three for each institution.
From the supplied materials, you can securely revise:
the four required institutional names
that the Commission, Parliament and Council are connected with secondary EU law making
that regulations and directives are made through these institutions acting together
that the CJEU develops legal doctrines
that CJEU doctrines contributed to the extension of rights to individuals
how these areas lead into the remaining EU law topics
However, the detailed membership of the institutions cannot safely be reconstructed from the supplied material.
A useful memory framework
Think of the institutions in two groups:
Law-making institutions
European Commission
European Parliament
Council of the European Union
Judicial institution
Court of Justice of the European Union
Then attach the linked topics:
Commission + Parliament + Council → regulations and directives
CJEU → judicial doctrines and individual rights
This keeps your knowledge organised and prevents you from merging different institutional functions.
Key Words 🔑
Key word | Student-friendly definition | How it may be used in an exam |
European Commission | An EU institution identified by OCR as participating with Parliament and the Council in EU secondary law making. | Explain its connection with regulations and directives. |
European Parliament | An EU institution which participates in the creation of secondary EU law. | Explain its role alongside the Commission and Council. |
Council of the European Union | An EU institution involved with the Commission and Parliament in EU secondary law making. | Distinguish the Council from the other EU institutions. |
CJEU | The Court of Justice of the European Union, connected by OCR with the development of doctrines extending individual rights. | Explain the judicial role within the EU legal system. |
Secondary EU law | EU legal rules including regulations and directives, distinguished from treaty-based primary law. | Explain the law-making connection between the Commission, Parliament and Council. |
Hints from the Examiner Reports 💡
Examiner hint: Learn EU law as carefully as the other law-making topics. In 2023, very few candidates chose the EU law AO1 question and performance was highly polarised. Candidates who knew the topic securely produced outstanding responses, while others struggled to provide accurate detail.
Examiner hint: Do more than give a name or basic definition. For the 2023 EU question, OCR looked for a definition of each source, further accurate detail and an example. The same principle is useful when revising institutions: identify the institution and then explain its legal function rather than simply listing names.
Examiner hint: Keep your response focused on the precise question. OCR's 2023 examiner report warned that some candidates identify a broad topic from a keyword and then write everything they know, wasting valuable examination time.
Examiner hint: Quantity is not automatically quality. OCR demonstrated in its 2023 report that a concise but accurate and developed AO1 response can reach the highest level. Prioritise correct institutional roles over an unnecessarily long account.
Examiner hint: Be cautious with unsupported online material. OCR's 2024 examiner report specifically warns that informal internet and social-media law resources may be misleading or incorrect. This is particularly important for EU institutions, where membership arrangements and numerical information can change.
Common Mistakes ⚠️
Mistake: Treating all four institutions as if they perform the same function
Why this is incorrect: The supplied OCR material distinguishes the legislative involvement of the Commission, Parliament and Council from the judicial role of the CJEU.
How to improve: Remember:
Commission + Parliament + Council = secondary EU law
CJEU = judicial development of EU law
Mistake: Confusing the European Parliament with the UK Parliament
Why this is incorrect:They are separate institutions operating in different legal structures.
How to improve:Always use the full term European Parliament when answering an EU institutions question.
Mistake: Confusing the Council with the Commission
Why this is incorrect: OCR lists them as separate EU institutions even though both are involved in the EU legislative structure.
How to improve: Learn the four institutional names individually and identify the institution before discussing its function.
Mistake: Saying the CJEU is one of the institutions making regulations and directives in the supplied OCR material
Why this is incorrect: The 2023 OCR mark scheme identifies the Council, Commission and Parliament in connection with regulations and directives. The specification instead connects the CJEU with doctrines extending individual rights.
How to improve: Separate legislative and judicial functions in your notes.
Mistake: Adding current institutional membership figures from memory
Why this is incorrect: The OCR specification requires membership, but the supplied materials here do not provide those figures or detailed composition. Using unsupported figures would breach the source boundary for these notes.
How to improve: Use OCR-supported teaching material containing the required membership information before adding it to your revision knowledge.
Mistake: Writing everything you know about EU law
Why this is incorrect: An institutions question does not automatically require detailed discussion of treaty types, direct effect or supremacy.
How to improve: Answer the institution asked about first. Move to sources of EU law [Sources of European Union law] and individual rights [EU law and individual rights] only when those issues are relevant to the question.
Exam-Style Questions ✍️
Question 1
Name the four institutions of the European Union specifically identified in the OCR H418 specification. [4]
Question 2
Identify the three EU institutions that OCR connects with the making of regulations and directives. [3]
Question 3
Explain one legal function of the European Commission supported by the supplied OCR material. [2]
Question 4
Explain the relationship between the European Parliament and the creation of secondary EU law. [3]
Question 5
Explain the legal role of the Council of the European Union at the level supported by the supplied OCR material. [3]
Question 6
Explain how the role of the CJEU differs from the law-making role associated with the Commission, Parliament and Council. [4]
Question 7
Explain how the institutions of the European Union connect with regulations and directives. [6]
Question 8
Describe the legal functions of the European Commission, European Parliament, Council of the European Union and Court of Justice of the European Union at the level supported by the supplied OCR materials. [8]
Answers and Indicative Mark Scheme
Question 1 [4]
Award one mark for each:
European Commission
European Parliament
Council of the European Union
Court of Justice of the European Union
Question 2 [3]
Award one mark for each:
European Commission
European Parliament
Council of the European Union
Question 3 [2]
Indicative answer:
The European Commission participates with the European Parliament and Council of the European Union in the creation of secondary EU law, including regulations and directives.
Question 4 [3]
Indicative content:
the European Parliament is an EU institution
it participates in EU secondary law making
OCR connects Parliament with the Commission and Council in the making of regulations and directives
Question 5 [3]
Indicative content:
the Council of the European Union is one of the institutions required by OCR
it participates in EU law making
it is connected with the Commission and Parliament in relation to regulations and directives
Question 6 [4]
Indicative answer:
The supplied OCR materials connect the Commission, European Parliament and Council of the European Union with the making of secondary legislation such as regulations and directives. The CJEU has a judicial role. OCR specifically requires knowledge of doctrines developed by the CJEU and domestic courts which extended rights to individuals.
Question 7 [6]
Indicative content:
regulations and directives are secondary sources of EU law
OCR identifies the Council, Commission and Parliament as participating in their creation
Article 288 is referred to in connection with these secondary sources
the institutions therefore form part of the EU legal structure through which regulations and directives are produced
detailed effects of these sources belong to the separate topic sources of EU law [Sources of European Union law]
Higher marks require developed explanation of the relationship rather than simply naming the institutions.
Question 8 [8]
A strong response based on the supplied materials should explain:
the European Commission's participation in EU secondary law making
the European Parliament's participation in EU secondary law making
the Council of the European Union's participation in EU secondary law making
their joint connection with regulations and directives
the separate judicial role of the CJEU
the CJEU's role in developing doctrines which extended rights to individuals
For a fully comprehensive OCR response, students would also need the required membership information for each institution. That information is not provided in the supplied OCR specification, question papers, mark schemes or examiner reports used for this page.
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