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Category: In the News

Ornate red and ivory wall decoration, with plaque and symbols

70th Anniversary of the German Federal Court of Justice

Posted by: Jenny Gesley

This month, the German Federal Court of Justice (Bundesgerichtshof, BGH)—Germany’s supreme court for civil and criminal cases—is celebrating its 70th anniversary. It was established on October 1, 1950, and immediately started hearing cases as it took over the case files from the German Supreme Court for the British Zone (Oberster Gerichtshof für die Britische Zone, …

Ornate red and ivory wall decoration, with plaque and symbols

100 Year Anniversary of the Austrian Constitution

Posted by: Jenny Gesley

Unlike most countries, Austria does not have just one constitutional document, like the Constitution of the United States for example, but several documents that have constitutional status. Of these documents, the most important one is the Austrian Federal Constitutional Law (Bundes-Verfassungsgesetz). It was adopted by the Constituent National Assembly on October 1, 1920—100 years ago today—and entered into force …

Ornate red and ivory wall decoration, with plaque and symbols

“Justice Dogs” in Germany

Posted by: Jenny Gesley

Are you looking for a legitimate reason to browse adorable dog pictures at work? Well, this blog post might just be what you were looking for! In December 2019, the Golden Retriever “Watson” started his work as a “justice dog” in the German state of Baden-Württemberg as part of a pilot project. Justice dogs are trained …

Ornate red and ivory wall decoration, with plaque and symbols

New Report on “Regulating Electronic Means to Fight the Spread of COVID-19” Published

Posted by: Jenny Gesley

It appears that COVID-19 will not go away any time soon. As there is currently no known cure or vaccine against it, countries have to find other ways to prevent and mitigate the spread of this infectious disease. Many countries have turned to electronic measures to provide general information and advice on COVID-19, allow people to …

Ornate red and ivory wall decoration, with plaque and symbols

15th Anniversary of the European Defence Agency

Posted by: Jenny Gesley

On July 12, 2004—15 years ago today—the European Union’s (EU) Council Joint Action 2004/551/CFSP created the European Defence Agency (EDA). In 2011, the Joint Action was replaced by Council Decision 2011/411/CFSP, which was revised in 2015 by Council Decision (CFSP) 2015/1835.  These legislative acts implement the requirements of article 42 of the Treaty on European Union (TEU), which, among other things, sets …

Ornate red and ivory wall decoration, with plaque and symbols

New Report on the Regulation of Artificial Intelligence

Posted by: Jenny Gesley

Everybody seems to be talking about artificial intelligence (AI). Some people laud its possibilities, whereas others envisage nightmare scenarios where robots take over. But what is AI exactly and how are countries dealing with it? The Oxford Dictionary defines AI as “the theory and development of computer systems able to perform tasks normally requiring human …