Of Trailers and Jet Skis: Is the Case Law on Article 34 TFEU Hurtling in a New Direction?

The provision which is the focus of this Article is article 34 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union ("TFEU" or "Treaty") (formerly article 28 EC). This Article focuses on an analysis of two recent judgments on this important issue delivered by the European Court of Justice ("Court") in 2009, namely the Trailers decision and the Mickelsson decision. Before reaching these judgments, the Article discusses very briefly the relationship between the four freedoms (free movement of goods, persons, services, and capital) and then, as to the scope of article 34, reminds the reader of what is "the story so far." This story falls neatly into three parts, each beginning with a seminal judgment: Dassonville, Cassie de Dijon, and Keck. For good measure, this Article will also consider the principles governing justification under article 36 TFEU (article 30 EC).