Eurodevils say thanks for “experience of a lifetime”

Eurodevils 2017 with Charles Mullin of ELA (second left) and Peter Sellar, co-ordinator (fourth from right)

 

YOUNG lawyers from ten countries are preparing to head home with a new-found understanding and appreciation of the Scottish legal system, after taking part in the Faculty’s 2017 Eurodevils programme.

The programme is run in conjunction with the European Lawyers’ Association (ELA) and dates from the 1970s.

For 12 weeks, Parliament House became “home” for the Eurodevils and each had placements with senior and junior counsel and with a Senator to learn about the Scottish Bar and the country’s systems for criminal and civil justice.

The class of 2017 was Adriena Petrova from Slovakia, Agnieszka Junker from Luxembourg/Poland, Christian Parbo from Denmark, Francesca Sandrone from Italy, Hanna Pahk from Estonia, Hannah Frahm from Germany, Jessica Ronot from France, Josefina Tranquada Gomes from Portugal, Markus Ingstrom from Finland and Yelieny Bido Rodriguez from Spain.

On behalf of the group, Francesca Sandrone said:  "This programme is a great opportunity for all of us, both from a professional and a personal point of view. It gives us a new and deep perspective on the Scottish legal system, comparing it with different organisation all across Europe.

“We dealt not only with the legal system but also with the institutional one, and we could understand closely how Scotland faces the major issues and international debate. We are very grateful to the members of Faculty and judges who have supported the programme and using their time with us: they were so friendly in every moment and open to listen and answer every question we made. It was one of the best experiences of my life."

Peter Sellar, Advocate, the programme’s co-ordinator, added: “It has been a great pleasure to have the Eurodevils in house for these last few months and I am sure that they have all benefited greatly from the generosity of their hosts. Brexit be damned…the Eurodevil programme is in rude health!”