On the invitation of Professor Koen Lenaerts, the President of the Court of Justice of the European Union, Professor Adam Lazowski from the University of Westminster Law School took part in a conference commemorating the 20th anniversary of the big bang enlargement of the European Union (EU).
On 1 May 2004 Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Czechia, Slovakia, Hungary, Slovenia, Malta and Cyprus joined the EU. This has been the biggest EU enlargement, ending the decades-long division between the West and the East.
The conference was a unique opportunity to reflect on the impact the enlargement has had on the EU, and particularly on its legal order. The list of speakers included many judges of the EU Court of Justice as well as national supreme courts.
The panel moderated by Professor Łazowski focused on the values of the EU, especially the rule of law challenges of the past decade. In his opening words, Professor Łazowski emphasised that Central European countries which joined the EU in 2004 brought to the Union not only the heavy baggage of post-communism recovery and restoration but also their own rich heritage, sometimes going back centuries. While the big bang enlargement is generally considered to be a success story, the illiberal reforms in Poland and Hungary have triggered the rule of law crisis. Reflecting on it, the speakers focused on their national perspective and experience from Malta, Hungary and Lithuania.
Professor Adam Łazowski said: “It was a great honour to contribute to this conference and to celebrate such a milestone in the history of Europe. I recall the joy of waking up on 1 May 2004, thinking proudly Civis Europeus Sum, I am now a European citizen. For my generation and the generation of my parents and grandparents, it was a day to rejoice. It was a civilisational change, ending the dark era of communism and post-communist transition. It was a leap into the unknown, which – looking back – was worth every effort and sacrifice. In my wildest dreams I did not expect to find myself - twenty years later – at the speakers’ lectern at Grande Salle of the Court of Justice.”
Professor Łazowski’s work at the conference directly contributes to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 16: Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions. Since 2019, the University of Westminster has used the SDGs holistically to frame strategic decisions to help students and colleagues fulfil their potential and contribute to a more sustainable, equitable and healthier society.
Watch the recording of the conference.
Learn more about studying Law at the University of Westminster.
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