by Cynthia Price
Legal News
Constraints of international travel, access to the Internet, and just plain bad timing prevented Thomas M. Cooley Law School Professor Paul Carrier from answering questions about his sabbatical and study in time for the Aug. 29 Grand Rapids Legal News article which focused on them.
However, just after his Slovak language study ended Aug. 26, Carrier visited friends in Prague and was able to send his answers. He has since returned to the United States and is blogging about his experiences on the Cooley Law School blog, http://cooleylawschoolblog.com/
Here are the questions and his answers, some of them composites, as of early September:
GRLN: How did you originally come by your interest in Eastern European countries and their laws?
Carrier: I worked on a masters of law at Georgetown University Law Center, and focused on renewed efforts to create a multilateral regime for international government procurement under the auspices of the WTO system. I inquired about where most of the activity in that area was, which was Central Europe (significant US involvement, with looming EU membership that would also play a part). I picked the country whose laws seemed in most need of amendment at the time - Slovakia. Somewhat ironically, by the time of EU membership, arguably Slovakia's law was the most comprehensive and appropriate among members.
GRLN: How was your Slovak language study?
Carrier: The Skola Academica Slovaca (SAS) is a special Slovak language institute organized under the Philosophy Faculty of Comenius University. I was learning language as a way to deepen my understanding of culture, law and policy, some of which is shared with Serbia, the other Slavic country where I’ll be spending my sabbatical.
The SAS was very well organized. The program identified participant levels and organized the participants into groups based on interest (grammar, literature, basics) and prior experience. The instructors were rigorous but very helpful; the staff was quite helpful. Further, the organization of coursework included lecture/learning, written exercises (with a little "domaca uloha" or homework), specific speaking exercise to help integrate, and a variety of cultural events (traditional music, cuisine, movies, bands and musical groups, dancing, etc.) as well as workshops in which one would learn a dance or a craft while working in the Slovak language. The participants are smart and ambitious students who want to be historians, teachers, translators, travel agents, people in business who can work in several languages, and even some who want to connect with their heritage. At upper levels, students of the Academy are put into contact with Slovak scholars of various sciences and pursuits. If one brings a positive attitude and a little flexibility, the tight organization, varied experience, and excellent teachers and administrators ensure a valuable experience.
GRLN: Could you summarize how Slovakian law compares to U.S. law?
Carrier: Slovakia is based on an Austro-Hungarian legal model, like many countries in the region. Such code systems in Central Europe set out to codify the rules on the main issues, leaving discretionary decision-making for factual scenaria that fall within the interstices of the written codes....common law too utilizes codes (“statutes”) but publishes decisions on factual scenaria that fall within the interstices, which then encourages to a greater degree a kind of “best practices” that also should enjoy popular support.
It is a civil law tradition that is highly codified and that does not rely on case precedent. Where the code at issue is comprehensive, there is clear guidance. However, where the relevant code does not cover something at issue, judges are able to decide ad hoc without resort to prior precedent. This gives judges heightened discretion, which in the past arguably was influenced by the political facets of the country. The law is approaching something more like the system with which we are familiar, common law with binding case precedent, as the country continues on its journey to adopt the EU's acquis communitaire.
GRLN: Do you have a strong interest in policy?
Carrier: I do. It takes time to understand a system well enough to determine the good and the bad in a nation's laws and policies, and a truly enlightened understanding of policy requires an understanding of historic, cultural, regional and political influences. There are two basic approaches to international law and policy - a hegemonous view which is inflexible, and one that seeks understanding and a kind of rapprochement to find a balance between two or more different systems. Both have their place in today's legal and political worlds. In business, the latter is probably more efficacious, particularly for international business.
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