ABSTRACT
This book has examined the interaction between integration and law. It has sought to identify legal elements of the concept of integration, not only in the national context in Ireland, the UK and France but also in the international and EU law settings. It has shown that these legal elements of integration are fragmented and disparate but nonetheless significant. Legal rules and frameworks, particularly in domains such as religious freedom, immigration and citizenship, are inevitably part of the integration process whether or not they are recognized as such by lawmakers, and whether they form part of a broader integration policy framework or not. For these reasons, along with the direct influence of law on the status, entitlements and opportunities of immigrants, the legal framework for integration must be acknowledged and identified as such. Above all, the book has argued for a more developed paradigm of ‘integration and law’ which emphasizes the extent of the law’s influence on the integration process whilst recognizing the limits of this influence. It has also sought to underline the importance of not only the internal legal foundations of national integration policy but also the pervasive influence of international and EU law on national integration frameworks.
