Denne selvdisciplin er navnlig vigtig, når bestemmelserne i traktaten benytter upræcise retlige begreber og giver institutionerne et skøn, ¡det institutionen i dette tilfælde er væsentligt mindre bundet af traktaten.
For the institution responsible for the act, the obligation to give reasons for it involves a kind of self­criticism since, in drawing up its reasons, it must pay close attention to the conditions precedent laid down for its action in the Treaties.30 This self­criticism is even more important in cases where the provisions of the Treaty imply legal concepts which are unclear or which give the institutions a margin of discretion since, in that event, the link which binds the institution to the Treaty loses much of its force.