European University of Law and
Administration Quarterly Journal

EUROPEAN REVIEW OF LAW AND INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

The history of the University periodical began in a very significant time for Poland since its first issue was published precisely at the beginning of May 2004 which is the date of Polish accession to the European Union – the date that is of course not coincidental.

European character of the journal expressed in its title has been distinctly manifested ever since the first issue. The titles of articles published in the very first few released issues (between years 2004 and 2006 when the journal was still named European Review of Law) highlight how important this European aspect of the journal was for the editors. Let’s quote some as examples: ‘Harmonization of law in the European Economic Community and the approximation of Polish legislation to the Community law’, ‘Europeanization of Polish employment law’, ‘German compensation and vindication claims against Poland: ratione materiae and ratione temporis’, ratione materiae i ratione temporis‘Charter of Fundamental Rights: origins, content, applicability, attempt of assessment’, ‘What’s next after Tampere? Areas of freedom, security and justice’, ‘Amendments to the criminal fiscal law after Polish accession to the European Union’, ‘Community trademark law’, ‘Freedom of movement for workers in the European Union’, ‘State sovereignty in the European Union: primacy and direct application’.

The first issues of the journal (which was originally designed as a bimonthly journal but very quickly turned into a quarterly journal) contained publications of foreign authors, which became a common practice with time (just like multilingual character of selected issues of the journal).

Substantive content of the seven initial issues of the journal should be credited to the first editor-in-chief Piotr Ambroziak. It is also just appropriate to name at least a few of the initial authors like Witold Wołodkiewicz, Tadeusz Szymanek, Władysław Czapliński, Anne Fort and Richard D. Pomp.

One of the most important authors writing for the journal was the judge of the Supreme Court Tadeusz Szymanek, who didn’t stop publishing until his unfortunate passing, similarly to the University’s rector of then Dariusz Czajka who died in March. Moreover, both of them were active members of the Editorial Board from the very beginning of the journal.

In 2009 after a three year hiatus the quarterly was reactivated under a slightly changed title ‘European Review of Law and International Relations’. Ewa Boniecka-Bromke became the new editor-in-chief and she occupied this position until September 2013. Also the profile of the journal changed subtly. Legal and administrative subjects were complemented by content of more political (which explains the change in the title), sociological and related to its character. Since 2009 the quarterly has broadened its thematic scope with new areas of humanities. This intentionally adopted interdisciplinary character of the journal, which somewhat forced the search of various connections between social sciences was also reflected by the new, enriched profile of the University. 

In October 2013 the role of the editor-in-chief was taken over by Jerzy J. Wiatr. He has occupied this position to this day while also being very important, prolific author of numerous articles and reviews.

In the last eight years philosophy of law and related subjects were much more noticeable among the various texts published in the journal. Political analysis are also much more common (including those presented by foreign authors). Among our most acclaimed foreign authors we can mention

- Shlomo Avineri – a professor at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, member of the Academy of Learning, world renowned historian specializing in Marxism and Zionism;

- Anton Beber – a professor emeritus at the University of Ljubljana, a visiting professor at the European University of Law and Administration, the president of the Slovenian Euro-Atlantic Council, one of the most acclaimed theoreticians of the military and state security subjects;

- Ergun Özbudun – a professor at the University in Istanbul, the most prominent Turkish theoretician of the constitutional law, honorary professor at the European University of Law and Administration;

- Adam Przeworski – a professor at the New York University and Chicago University, a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences;

- Elena Shestopal – a professor at the Moscow State University ‘M.V.Lomonosov’, former vice-president of the International Political Science Association;

- Aleksander Zapiesocki – the rector of the St. Petersburg Humanities University of Trade Unions, correspondent member of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Honoured Science Worker of the Russian Federation, doctor honoris causa at various Universities in the USA, Israel and Ukraine and an honorary professor at the European University of Law and Administration.

A lot of texts are being published in their original languages (most commonly English, Russian and French), especially monographic issues which were created as a result of international conferences. However, some of the articles published by foreign authors are being translated into Polish.

Special issues and monographic issues of the European Review of Law and International Relations are usually dedicated in full or in their major part to either celebrate the most important events in our modern history (for example for the 20th anniversary of adopting of the current Constitution of the Republic of Poland the journal published the results of the conference dedicated to this event. Former president Aleksander Kwaśniewski was as a special guest on this conference) or to commemorate people closely connected with the University who passed away (prof. Adam Bromke, judge of the Supreme Court Tadeusz Szymanek, prof. dr hab. Andrzej Bierć and recently Dariusz Czajka, a professor at the European University of Law and Administration and a barrister).

Recently the journal has expanded its already wide spectrum of subjects with a topic of growing concern - the public safety. Although obviously the most interesting issues with Polish and EU law, so important and dominating especially in the early years of the journal after the accession, will never be ignored by the editors ...

It is worth mentioning that the possibilities to publish in the journal were always available for the students and graduates of the European University of Law and Administration. Publishing selected students’ thesis is one of the didactical tools that is hard to overestimate.

Piotr Ambroziewicz was the first editor-in-chief of the journal (previously entitled European Review of Law). For more than a decade journal’s content has been complemented by the selected political and sociological topics. The current editor-in-chief of the European Review of Law and International Relations is Jerzy J. Wiatr.

So far 69 issues have been published (including EPP and ERL&IR).