At the annual meeting of the Academy of European Law’s Board of Trustees, Vladislav Cojuhari, Minister of Justice of the Republic of Moldova, signed the accession agreement together with Marc van der Woude, Chairman of ERA’s Board of Trustees, and the Academy’s Director, Jean-Philippe Rageade.
Minister Cojuhari stated: “Becoming a member of the Academy of European Law represents a strong contribution to my country’s commitment to increasing the quality of the justice system and of practitioners in all legal professions. This is a strategic investment in legal expertise for all judges, lawyers, prosecutors, public officials, and academics from the Republic of Moldova who have a role in fostering closer integration into the European legal and judicial community. As a candidate country, we have to invest in the capacity of our institutions to apply European standards in a professional, coherent, and credible manner.”
Jean-Philippe Rageade commented: “We are delighted that the Republic of Moldova has decided to join our Foundation. It is essential to enhance knowledge of EU law among legal practitioners in countries moving towards closer integration with the European Union. By joining the Academy, Moldova is demonstrating its commitment to reinforcing the rule of law and supporting its legal community on this path. We look forward to supporting the country on its journey towards the EU.”
In recent years, ERA has welcomed an increasing number of participants from the Republic of Moldova to its continuing training programmes and scholarships have been provided to Moldovan judges and lawyers to facilitate participation in ERA activities. In addition, the ERA Fund for the Western Balkans, Moldova and Ukraine, established with the support of the Friends of ERA association, provides financial support for training programmes tailored to the needs of legal practitioners in EU accession countries.
Moldovan civil servants and members of the judiciary will now benefit from a special patrons’ discount when attending ERA events. As an ERA Patron, the Republic of Moldova will also have a seat on ERA’s Governing Board.
ERA looks forward to reinforcing its partnership with the Republic of Moldova and to welcoming increasing numbers of Moldovan legal professionals to its training events in the years ahead.
