"The Union's values - enshrined in Article 2 TEU - are under pressure in several Member States. Against this backdrop, the Court of Justice has set a spectacular development in motion. With its ruling in Associação Sindical dos Juízes Portugueses it started to mobilise these values. Since then, the jurisprudence has evolved at breakneck speed. This book provides a first comprehensive study of the judicial activation of Article 2 TEU. It starts by developing the foundations of this emerging jurisprudence in empirical, doctrinal, and theoretical terms. At its heart it seeks to advance a new understanding of Article 2 TEU. The provision should be understood as featuring a dual character that resonates between two dimensions: an EU dimension limited to the EU legal order and a 'Verbund' dimension that extends to the common whole of the Union and its Member States. The second and third parts set out to explore the multifaceted potential of Article 2 TEU in each of these two dimensions. Finally, the book assesses the risks of placing an activated Article 2 TEU into the hands of the Luxembourg judges and proposes ways to recalibrate the jurisprudence"-- Provided by publisher.