Marissa Zupancic is JURIST’s Washington DC Correspondent, a JURIST Senior Editor and a 3L at the University of Pittsburgh School of Law. She’s stationed in Washington during her Semester in DC. Georgetown University hosted a conference on Monday covering the 75th anniversary of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), a military alliance of more than 30 [...]
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INTERPOL and Europol announced Monday that the organizations broke up a migrant smuggling ring that brought migrants from Cuba to the European Union (EU). 62 arrests were made in cooperation with the governments of Germany, Greece, Northern Macedonia, Spain and Serbia. The investigation into the smuggling ring began in October 2021 after several EU countries [...]
The US Supreme Court does not want or need an enforceable code of ethics. As I listen to the reasons given by some members of the Supreme Court to support this position, the words sound strikingly familiar. I have heard the same reasons given by judges in several developing democracies, mostly post-communist countries in Central [...]
North Macedonia police arrest 10 suspected members of international people smuggling ring
The Police of North Macedonia announced Monday they arrested ten men who are suspected members of an international people smuggling ring. The arrests were the culmination of an investigation that lasted from July 2021 to May 2023. Macedonian police stated that the group is part of an international migrant smuggling channel and consists of 17 members in [...]
UN judges expand war crime convictions of former Serbian security officials
The UN International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals (IRMCT) on Wednesday expanded the convictions and increased the sentences of two individuals who helped to murder and deport non-Serbs during the Balkan wars. The two, Jovica Stanišić and Franko Simatović, are former Serbian security officials. The IRMCT’s Appeals Chamber dismissed the men’s appeals of their convictions [...]
EU dispatch: Serbia and Kosovo agree to EU proposal on normalization of relations
Law students from the European Union are reporting for JURIST on law-related events in and affecting the European Union and its member states. Ciara Dinneny is JURIST’s Chief European Correspondent and a trainee with the Law Society of Ireland. She files this dispatch from Dublin. Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic and Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti [...]
Europe rights court orders Russia to legalize same-sex unions
The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) Tuesday ordered Russia to recognize same-sex unions. The ruling came in response to an appeal by three gay couples who were denied the ability to marry by Russian authorities. It remains to be seen whether Russia will implement the court’s ruling. A bench of 17 judges presided over [...]
European Commission recommends Bosnia and Herzegovina as candidate for EU membership
The European Commission (EC) Wednesday recommended Bosnia and Herzegovina be granted candidate status for accession to the European Union (EU). In a press release, the EC announced Bosnia and Herzegovina’s candidate status. The EC emphasized that the candidate status dictates that Bosnia and Herzegovina take steps towards reinforcing democracy, functionality of state institutions, rule of [...]
EU Candidate Status for Ukraine and Its Subsequent Implications
On June 23, 2022, in a “historic moment” for Kyiv, Ukraine was granted candidate status by the European Union (EU) in response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Apart from being a geopolitical step, this move manifests the fact that the West has rallied behind Ukraine against the invasion by Russian forces. Moldova also officially [...]
Russia issues retaliatory visa restrictions over Ukraine sanctions
Russian President Vladimir Putin Monday issued a decree restricting visas for citizens of countries deemed unfriendly by the Kremlin. Under the decree, expedited visa procedures for citizens of the European Union, Norway, Denmark, Iceland, Switzerland and Lichtenstein will cease. Additionally, Russian state-affiliated news agency TASS reported that the decree suspends payment waivers for government officials [...]