The fall of communism in Central and Eastern Europe has created an extraordinary opportunity to raise democratic societies in that part of the world. However, since the 2008 economic crisis and throughout the ongoing pandemic, Europe has seen a rise of populist movements, which depart from governing by “the rule of law” in favor of the “rule by law”.
During our second webinar on 29 April at 12:00, Professor Angelica Nussberger from the Cologne University, a former Judge of the European Court of Human Rights, will focus on the fundamental definition and understanding of the notion of justice. The lecture will be followed by a panel discussion hosted by Professor Adam Bodnar, Commissioner for Human Rights of the Republic of Poland.
Language of the event is English. Live streaming will be available for all interested parties on the day of the event.
Register here for active participation.
Rule of Law - Clarities and unclarities about fundamental notion of justice
Professor Nussberger will talk about issues related to the rule of law in the context of the European Court for Human Rights. She will focus on the fundamental understanding (as well as misunderstanding) of the meaning of justice, based her experience at the Court in Strasburg.
About the series
The webinar series “Spring with the Rule of Law in CEE” is organised by Riga Graduate School of Law and SWPS University of Social Sciences and Humanities. The series aims to raise the awareness of participants about the fundamental concepts of the rule of law system, its Central and Eastern European specifics and the traps that await society during the creation of a fully democratic political community.
Participants will have an opportunity to attend meetings and discussions with acclaimed experts who have spent their time on in-depth research of the rule of law, Central and Eastern Europe, and the legal practices strengthening these ideals.
The series aims to shed some light on emerging issues and opportunities in Central and Eastern Europe and the European Union as a whole.
Keynote speaker
Angelika Nussberger – is professor at Cologne University teaching international law and comparative constitutional law. From 2011 until 2019 she was Judge at the European Court of Human Rights elected on behalf of Germany, and for three years, between 2017 and 2019, she was the Court’s Vice-President. She is the German member of the Venice Commission and International Judge at the Constitutional Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Panelists
Barbara Grabowska-Moroz – is a research fellow at CEU Democracy Institute (Budapest, Hungary). From 2018 to 2021, she was a postdoc researcher in the RECONNECT project (University of Groningen, the Netherlands). Between 2010 and 2018, Barbara worked as a lawyer and project coordinator at the Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights (Warsaw, Poland), and, as of 2014, as a legal expert at the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRANET). In 2010, Barbara graduated with a Master’s degree from the Faculty of Law and Administration of the University of Warsaw, and in 2012 with a LL.M degree from the Central European University. In 2017, she successfully defended her doctoral thesis on the oversight of the special security services in Poland.
Kristaps Tamužs – is the Head of the Legal Department of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Latvia. The Legal Department is responsible for research, analysis and systematisation of the case-law of the Constitutional Court as well as the case-law of foreign and international courts. Prior to accepting his current position, he worked as an advisor to the Constitutional Court and before that, he had been working at the Registry of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) in Strasbourg, France for more than six years, first as an assistant lawyer and later as a lawyer. At the ECHR, Mr. Tamužs was assisting judges in processing applications lodged primarily against Latvia. Since 2015, Kristaps Tamužs has also been a visiting lecturer at the Riga Graduate School of Law, teaching courses related to constitutional law and human rights, as well as supervising students’ research activities. He obtained his bachelor’s degree in law at the Concordia International University Estonia and afterwards went on to obtain a LL.M degree in comparative constitutional law from the Central European University in Budapest.
Host
Professor Adam Bodnar – is a lawyer specializing in constitutional law and human rights. He has held the position of the Commissioner for Human Rights of the Republic of Poland since September 2015. He is also a former Vice-President of the Helsinki Foundation of Human Rights (2010-2015). Throughout his career, he has been working with many NGOs, including Panoptykon Foundation (Chair of the Foundation Council), ClientEarth Poland (member of the Program Council), Professor Zbigniew Hołda Association (co-founder and member of the board). Additionally, he was a member of the Civic Legislation Forum operating at the Batory Foundation and a member of the Board of Directors of the United Nations Voluntary Fund for Victims of Torture (2014 - 2015).
Prof. Bodnar is an author and co-author of numerous scientific publications, in particular on the topic of human rights. His doctoral theses A multilayer citizenship in the European constitutional space received a special prize in a competition organized by Przegląd Sejmowy (Sejm Overview), a bi-monthly publication of the Polish Parliament (Sejm). Professor Bodnar obtained his post-doctoral degree (habilitacja) at the University of Warsaw in 2019. His post-doctoral dissertation was published as Wykonywanie orzeczeń Europejskiego Trybunału Praw Człowieka w Polsce. Wymiar instytucjonalny (Implementation of Judgements of the European Tribunal for Human Rights in Poland. Institutional Dimension), (Wolters Kluwer).