We have dedicated this issue of LGP News to an extremely important topic: the rule of law. The rule of law is the cornerstone of a just and democratic society. However, its realisation is still a major undertaking, as many articles by our renowned guest authors and LGP partners demonstrate.
The former governor of the Austrian National Bank, Ewald Nowotny, kicks off our focus topic by highlighting the tension between financial markets and the rule of law and outlining highly topical economic and socio-political issues. This is followed by an article by Gabriel Lansky, who describes the ban on legal advice and representation in EU sanctions law as a blatant infringement of fundamental European freedoms.
Georg Stawa, judicial attaché for South-East Europe at the Austrian Embassy in Belgrade, outlines the remarkable rule of law reforms in the Western Balkan states in the context of EU accession efforts. Irmgard Griss, former President of the Supreme Court, then emphasises the importance of judicial independence and how these may be developed and improved through constructive criticism.
In his worrying analysis of the current legal order, Philip Goeth shares LGP’s experience in European and international sanctions law. Maria Berger, former CJEU judge, discusses the importance of “soft power” in European rule of law, followed by the contribution of our legal expert Gerhard Jarosch, who provides insight into the international cooperation of defence lawyers in criminal investigations.
Klaus Steinmaurer, RTR Managing Director for the Telecommunications and Postal Services Division, explains the European and global perspective of regulatory policy, followed by constitutional expert Heinz Mayer, who emphasises the importance of administrative law and the training of judges in Austria, while Anna Zeitlinger and Elena Burova present the Middle East as a focal point for international dispute resolution.
Finally, Angela Angelovska and Marko Gucheski from our office in Skopje explain the importance of the Constitutional Court in North Macedonia, while Martin Jacko and Lubomir Chripko from our office in Bratislava shed light on the importance of the Constitutional Court from a Slovakian perspective.
We wish you an exciting and informative read.
Gabriel Lansky, Gerald Ganzger, Philip Goeth, Anna Zeitlinger, Martin Jacko & Arlind Zeqiri
