Young scientists contribute to the development of legal science at „Milestones 2024“
22. March 2024, Častá – Papiernička
The international conference of doctoral students and young scientists „Milestones of Law in the Central European Area 2024” opened its 18th year at the recreational Facility of the National Council of the Slovak Republic in Častá - Papiernička. The event is traditionally held under the auspices of the Dean of the Faculty of Law of Comenius University in Bratislava Eduard Burda.
The main objective of this traditional conference is to prepare young scientists for a professional career. The importance of the event is not only the presentation of the results of the participants' work on the chosen topic but also getting feedback from colleagues and invited experts, exchange of experience and ideas, development of communication skills and establishing new contacts. The conference linked young scientists from Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Poland and Ukraine.
Traditionally, the most represented Section of Criminal Law, Criminology and Criminalistics presented the main topic „Rule of Law and Criminal Law” and brought topics such as perception of the rule of law in the context of the amendment to the Criminal Code, statute of limitations for criminal prosecution, tax crimes, drug offences, detention in the application practice. Professor Jozef Čentéš, as a guarantor of the section, evaluated the morning session as follows: „In our section we dealt with one of the most important topics of our time, namely the relationship of rule of law and criminal law, in particular the interference with fundamental human rights and freedoms. We found a unique consensus that these interferences with fundamental human rights and freedoms in terms of both legal regulation but also the practices of the authorities applying the law, should be exceptional and should always respect the dignity of people.”
The section on Labour and Social Security Law with the topic „The Value of Women in Society” focused on the status of the female employee as a wife and mother, the protection of pregnant women and addressed the issue of gender equality within the European Union. „As innovators and creators, women make an important contribution to the development of society through patents, trademarks and copyright. Intellectual property created by women also possesses a high economic value,” said the author of the paper Women: innovators and creators Dr Petra Žárská.
The conference benefited from the active participation of 5th year master's students of the Faculty of Law, who were able to apply for the conference by presenting their master's thesis topics. This idea was supported by the activities of the Alumni Club of the Faculty of Law of CU, which thus created a space for future lawyers to discuss the topic of their theses in public.
One of the innovations of the conference was the plenary lecture given by Professor Juraj Vačok, currently working at the as a judge of the Supreme Administrative Court of the Slovak Republic and professor at the Department of Administrative and Environmental Law. Professor Vačok addressed the young researchers as a prominent public figure with a broad, long-standing academic and professional career.
This year, the conference provided two days for presentations and discussions. According to the organisers, they would like to enrich the next year of the conference with interactive discussions and workshops on selected topics.
„Legal scholarship will remain the main topic of this conference, but we would also like to advance into the dimension of developing the skills and capabilities of young scholars. Therefore, in the next years we will give the young researchers the opportunity to develop their skills in the field of legal science methodology, legislative drafting or in project management. We believe that the innovations that the Faculty of Law brings to this traditional conference will move the event to a new, qualitatively higher level”, concluded the Vice Dean of the Faculty of Law of CU Maroš Pavlovič.