Abstract
The adoption of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union has completed, from certain point of view, human rights evolution at the EU level. The Union Charter followed the concept of the protection of fundamental rights as a general principle of EU law formulated by the Court of Justice of the European Union. In line with Article 51(1), the Union Charter is addressed to the institutions of the European Union as well as to the Member States. However, the provisions of the Union Charter are binding on the Member States only when they are implementing Union law. Accordingly, it is necessary to answer the question whether the Member State is "implementing Union law" when the national court is deciding a case which has human rights dimension or a national law is being drafted and adopted. If so, the Union Charter has to be applied or taken into consideration. Case law of the Court of Justice of the EU is of cardinal relevance in this respect and it has to be duly analysed.
The EU Charter of Fundamental Rights has been gradually influencing legal systems of the Member States including the Czech Republic. Czech courts apply the Union Charter, though not always in conformity with Article 51(1). All Czech courts are obliged to apply the Union Charter, however, specific attention has to be paid to the Constitutional Court of the Czech Republic. Jurisdiction of the Constitutional Court includes decision-making in the area of the protection of fundamental rights and freedoms. It applies the Czech Charter of Fundamental Rights and Freedoms as well as international human rights treaties such as the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms. The approach of the Constitutional Court is crucial because it defines the status of the Union Charter in Czech legal system, it interprets the Czech Charter in the light of the Union Charter and thus affects decision making of other courts.