Book Reviews Boeles, Peter. Fair Immigration Procedure in Europe . London, Boston, The Hague: Martinus Nijhoff Publishers, 1997. Pp. xviii, 477. Index. This book results from the author's dissertation defended in Dutch at the Catholic University of Nijmegen in 1995. It explores the legal remedies which should be available to an individual in relation to actions or failures to act by a state in immigration proceedings concerning entry, residence and expulsion, and concentrates on international law as applicable to the 15 Member States of the European Union. By effective legal remedies or proceedings the author means remedies available to the individual against the state which meet certain conditions and which, as a result, maximize the chance of effective legal protection in individual cases. Six elements are chosen to assess whether the norms which may apply to national immigration proceedings ( inter alia , UN, ILO, Council of Europe, and European Union customary law and general principles) maximize the chance of effective legal protection in this field: proceedings must exist, be accessible, and have the character of judicial proceedings; legal and linguistic assistance to the parties must be guaranteed; the individual must be able to break the power of a fait accompli by, for example, requesting interim measures; the procedure for the establishment of facts and the Courts margin of appreciation must make it possible for the court or tribunal to take account of the essential aspects of the case and an appeal at a higher level must be available. With reference to these elements, in Parts B to E of the book, Boeles examines whether the different sources of international legal obligations mentioned above conform to his concept of effective immigration proceedings. The range of material covered is impressive and the orderly manner in which the research questions are posed means that the book is easy to use. In Part G of the book Boeles then examines the "regional acquis the effectiveness of legal remedies by means of immigration proceedings which the Member States of the European Union must guarantee pursuant to the totality of obligations described in the preceding chapters. Boeles' book is a careful and extensive analysis of the question of effective legal protection in immigration proceedings and the obligations imposed in this respect on the Member States of the European Union by a whole range of international conventions and treaties. It is a shame, however, that the book does not explore some of the most pressing issues concerning immigration procedures in Europe in future - not least the consequences in terms of the development of common European Union immigration law and policy of the obligations disclosed by the various texts which the author examines. Overall, this book is a welcome addition to the growing literature on immigration in the Member States of the European Union and a useful, concentrated discussion of the international legal obligations applicable in this field. Síofra O'Leary Legal Secretary Court of Justice of the European Communities
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