The European cooperation was initially formed in the wake of the Cold War to help preserve the unique European heritage. The Christian democratic idea, which was at the forefront of these efforts, elevated Western Europe once again, while the liberation of Europe represented a true historical moment. As a result of the change of regimes, the legitimacy of the institutional European cooperation was strengthened. 

However, Europe has been facing a multiple crises period for the past long decade, and for the first time in its history, the European integration lost one of its strategically important Member States. Furthermore, in the eyes of many citizens, the European institutions have failed to give effective responses to the series of crises nor were they able to provide the European nations with the resilience necessary to cope with the novel challenges. 

The question has been raised: what is the best way forward for European integration in the 21st century? What benefits can the European integration bring to the everyday life of the people as well as to the autonomy, resilience, and competitiveness of the Member States? The European integration is no longer an end in itself: it has arrived at a historical crossroad and a profound reflection on its future is urgently needed. In this vein, the international conference will explore the foundational legacy of the European cooperation and the challenges it needs to address from institutional reforms to strategic autonomy to competitiveness. 

 

Registration

 

PROGRAM

 

 

OPENING REMARKS

András LÁNCZI

Member of the Board of Trustees of MCC; Professor of Philosophy and Director of the European Center for Political Philosophy at MCC

Attila HORVÁTH

Justice of the Constitutional Court of Hungary; Professor of Legal and Constitutional History

ORGANIZER

Lénárd SÁNDOR

He is the head of the Center for International Law at MCC and of the Barna Horváth Hungary Law and Liberty Circle. He previously served as a chief counsel at the Constitutional Court of Hungary and as an advisor at the European Parliament. He is the author of the book “Constitutional Journey in the United States”. He has delivered individual guest lectures at universities in the United States, Portugal, Finland, Denmark, Slovenia and Croatia.

HOST OF THE CONFERENCE

Réka VARGA

She is a law student at Pázmány Péter Catholic University as well as MCC School of Law. Her research interests include the law and institutional setting of the European Union as well as of the strategic autonomy of the European cooperation.

THE MODERATORS OF THE CONFERENCE

Veronika KOROM

She is an assistant professor of law at Essec Business School (Paris and Singapore) and president of the Hungarian Arbitration Association. She acts as counsel in investment and commercial arbitration as well as arbitrator in commercial disputes.

Bálint SOMKÚTI

He is a research fellow at Center for Geopolitics. His main area of research is modern interest advancement including contemporary military operations, and non-conventional means such as guerilla and irregular warfare.

Gabriella ÉRDI

She is a law student at Pázmány Péter Catholic University and the researcher of the MCC Center for International Law. Her professional interests include sports law.

SPEAKERS

Anne-Marie LE POURHIET

She is a professor of law at the University of Rennes, noted expert in the field of constitutional law and vice president of the “Association française de droit constitutionnel”. She also plays an important role in the field of administrative responsibility and co-organises the Axis of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms at IDPSP.

Rocco BUTTIGLIONE

He is a professor of political science at Saint Pius V University in Rome and member of the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences. He served as a minister for EU policies and then as a minister for Cultural Assets and Activities in Italy. He received an honorary doctoral degree from Guatemalan Francisco Marroquín University for his commitment to the ideas of liberty.

Rev. Stefan MÜCKL

He is the Vice-Dean of the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross Faculty of Canon Law and Professor of the Ecclesiastical Law of the State. He is also a Roman Catholic priest of the Opus Dei personal prelature. He has published numerous articles on issues of constitutional and administrative law, and he wrote the expert reports on “The Relationship between State and Church in Germany and The Impact of European Law on German State-Church Law.”

Lorenza VIOLINI

She is a professor of constitutional law at the University of Milan and member of its Doctoral Board. She is also an active member of the Italian academic community, serving on the Academic Senate, member of the Board of Directors of Polis, the Research Institute of Lombardy Region and she has been the Coordinator of CRC I-WE (Innovation for Well-Being and Environment.

Vladam PETROV

He is a professor of law at the University of Belgrade where he teaches constitutional law and parliamentary law. He is also a justice at the Constitutional Court of Serbia and member of the Venice Commission. He is the author of a textbook on constitutional law and of numerous scholarly and professional papers in the field of constitutional law and co-author of numerous legal textbooks.

Gergely DELI

He is the Rector of the University of Public Service and Professor of Law at the Széchenyi University where he teaches Roman Law. He has previously served as a chief counsel to the Constitutional Court of Hungary and is the author of several books.

Peter M. HUBER

He is a renowned legal scholar and professor of law at the Ludwig-Maximilians-University of Munich where he holds the chair of public law and state philosophy. He is a former justice of the Federal Constitutional Court of Germany and a former Minister of the Interior of Thuringia. His field expertise includes European law and federal-state disputes.

Rajko KNEZ

He is a professor of the law of the European Union at the University of Maribor, Slovenia and former Dean of its Faculty of Law. He is a justice of the Constitutional Court of Slovenia and its former president. He was a member of the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague. He is the author of numerous scientific articles and monographs on law, his works have been cited in opinions of the Advocate Generals of the Court of Justice of the European Union.

Nicolò ZANON

He is a professor of law at the University of Milan, Italian judge and former justice at the Constitutional Court of Italy. He previously researched comparative constitutional law at the University of Turin. He received the Knight Grand Cross in the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic.

Christopher VAJDA

He is a professor of law at the College of Europe, a visiting professor at King’s College, London, and a key speaker on arbitration. He served as the UK judge at the CJEU from 2012 to 2020 and chaired a Conciliation Commission and joined the EU’s Arbitrations panel. participated in ICC and sports arbitrations, notable for the FA Rule K award. He is renowned for expertise in competition, state aid, and investment protection treaties.

David ENGELS

He holds the chair of Roman History at the University of Brussels (ULB) and currently works as a research professor at the Instytut Zachodni in Poznań, Poland. He is the author and editor of numerous scholarly books and papers on ancient history, reception history, the philosophy of history and modern conservatism, he is chiefly known through his monograph “Le déclin” (2013), where he compared the crisis of the EU to the decline and fall of the Roman Republic.

Nathan LEVINE

He is a Visiting Fellow at the Heritage Foundation, in Washington, D.C., and an independent analyst and consultant on politics and international affairs. He was formerly Assistant Director of the Center for China Analysis at the Asia Society Policy Institute and a researcher with Harvard University’s Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs as well as a consultant with The Asia Group.

Matthieu GRANDPIERRON

He is the head of the Political Science department at ICES-Vendée Catholic University. His research looks at the impact emotions, understanding of status and history have on foreign policy decision-making processes. He is also senior researcher at Ecole Polytechnique, Visiting Professor at the Shanghai University of Political Science and Law.

Balázs MÁRTONFFY

He is a political scientist and the Director of the Institute for American Studies at the University of Public Service. His work on international security has been featured in prominent publications, and he has affiliations with institutions like the Hungarian Diplomatic Academy and the Hungarian Atlantic Council.

Werner J. PATZELT

He is serving as Research Director of the Brussels MCC. He is a professor of comparative government. Throughout his academic career, he integrated a comparative perspective on politics with extensive empirical research. His vision for MCC Brussels is to be a hub for fundamental reflections and policy advice on European coherence, sustainable EU institutions, and Europe’s role in a post-occidental world.

Viktorija OBOLEVICH

She is a researcher at the Aarhus University, Denmark where she teaches the law of the European Union. She has written her doctoral thesis on the regulation of tobacco products in the internal market of the European Union. She has expertise in international market regulation.

Krisztián KECSMÁR

He is a Judge at the Court of Justice of the European Union. He previously served as a State Secretary at the Ministry of Justice and at the European Commission. His field of expertise include competition law, state aid law and sports law. His is a PhD candidate at the Károli Gáspár University of the Reformed Church.

Adam CANDEUB

Professor of Law and Director of the Intellectual Property, Information & Communications Law Program at the Michigan State University. Prior to joining MSU, he served as an advisor at the Federal Communications Commission and clerked for Chief Judge J. Clifford Wallace, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. He served as Assistant Secretary of Commerce and Deputy Associate Attorney General.

Nikos LAVRANOS

He is specialized in investment law, EU law, WTO law and arbitration and has expertise as arbitrator, mediator, legal consultant, academic and former policy maker and chief negotiator for Bilateral Investment Treaties.