Between facts, norms and a post- national constellation: Habermas, law and European social policy.

Jurgen Habermas has had a long-standing interest in the process of European integration, viewing it as an inescapable response to the pitfalls of globalization and the shortcoming of nation-state bounded welfare systems. He believes that, in the form of political and economic integration, Europe is being given a `second chance'. He argues, however, that in order to fulfil its democratic potential, a European form of solidarity, expressing itself via a post-national public sphere, is a development that cannot be left to historical fate; a `legally mediated solidarity' is the key to the formation of a post-national identity in Europe. In particular, he singles out the development of a post-national form of social policy as a crucial component of future solidarity construction. The present paper critically explores this potential role for law and social policy in Europe, casting some doubt on the value of both to Habermas's vision of a cosmopolitan solidarity and public sphere. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]