In this important book eighteen of Europe's most respected jurists and legal scholars look at long-term developments in Community and Union law with a view to shedding light on the current situation and pointing out lessons for the future. They consider major Community law themes as they have developed over the past four decades in institutional and substantive contexts, as well as in such newer areas of development as external relations, economic and monetary union, and the Third Pillar. This concentrated summary of the most important issues in forty years of legal developments reveals both the lasting triumphs along the way and the gaps that require urgent attention if the legitimacy of the Union is not to be impaired. These articles were first presented at a conference held at the end of 2003 to mark the 40th anniversary of the Common Market Law Review, and were originally published in a special issues of the Review.