Joint Declaration of the Deans of Law Faculties regarding the role of legal education in strengthening constitutional democracy and the rule of law
Published:
The deans of the law faculties in Bucharest, Cluj-Napoca, Craiova, Iași, Sibiu, and Timișoara, together with the Dean of the Faculty of Law at the State University of Moldova, have signed a joint declaration regarding the role of legal education in strengthening constitutional democracy and the rule of law.
The reality is that the Western world is undergoing a period of democratic regression. Constitutional democracies are under pressure. The causes include a democratic culture that is not sufficiently embraced by institutions, gaps in civic education, as well as overlapping crises and hybrid attacks aimed at weakening public trust in institutions.
The response proposed by the signatories is education: high-quality higher legal education and civic education for citizens. The values of constitutional democracy and the rule of law must be integrated into the curricula of top law faculties in Romania and the Republic of Moldova, as well as into legal research programs.
Law faculties can do more than just train legal professionals. At a time when democracy is in decline, they can provide a neutral space and the necessary expertise for a serious debate on the future of democracy in Romania, the Republic of Moldova, and Europe.