1/29/08

The skies are blue, the air is clear and the mountains are hulking today. My sister is off making strudel with the spouses. I continue to attend sessions.

Of particular interest has been the presentations by the former justice of the Hungarian Judicial Council. He explaind the Hungarian court sytem, which has up to four appellate levels, some of which can hold a retrial on their own (i.e. not remanding back to the trial court). The courts, even the appellate courts, are divided into civil and criminal sides, so they are relatively specialized. The speaker, who has a wry humor and is not the serious man of his formal picture, is quite the critic of the Hungarian judiciary , while maintaining that it remains independent.

Equally interesting are the discussions of the difference in the US and E. European legal systems, and the effect those differences will have on our teaching methods. In Eastern Europe, for example, a law degree is usually equivalent to a bachelor’s degree, obtained by younger students. At the beginning of their studies, these students pick a tract—private practice, prosecutor, judge (yes, one becomes a judge without practicing). After graduating, each group takes a “baby bar exam”, undergoes training, takes a certification exam, and then gain actual employment.

In addition, E. Europe has no punitive or treble damages, no contingency fees or class actions, and no discovery. A practicing lawyer is looked upon as a family advisor (as opposed to an advocate). So, there is much less litigation here. As the teacher said, “we are not aggressive like you are,; we handle matters like civilized people”.

The most difficult lectures have been those on E. Europe’s history, because it is very difficult to follow the speaker. That is due both to his “accent” and his stream of consciousness” approach. In private, he is very knowledgeable and interesting, even though he likes Putin, but in class he is unfathomable.

Sort of scary were the comments about the dual system of “law” in Russia. Laws are perfect on paper, but the real authority, and the hidden government, is organized crime. The reason, for example, that St. Petersburg is so clean and “safe” is that organized crime wants it that way. A recording artist must pay off the hidden government first, even before he can record his song. If the technical government wants to refurbish a building, if it does not pay the bribe price that the hidden government wants, the building either will not be renovated or it will take 10 years to do so. The general populace can spend up to 20% of their income on bribes. If they do not have the money, they use connections to mitigate their obligations.

Daria, the visiting scholar from my university, confirmed that I should not assign reading because it will not be done, and that the students will at first not “get” interactive lessons. But they will “get” an offer to go to the nearest pub.

I had a two hour window before the dinner session, so I was able to do a little exploring in town. I walked all around the residential neighborhoods,. Since I got really lost, I was able to see many nontourist neighborhoods. I stopped in a chocolate store and the proprietor offered me some absinthe, which was very smooth. I was not so lost as to be scared, and really had fun finding my way back up the mountain to the Schloss. My ipod, Frank Sinatra and me. By the time I returned, I was starving and was ready for supper, wine and some coffee.

After the evening session, a samall group gathered and I spoke at length with a couple from NYC. The husband works for a large firm representing Lloyds and other large insurers. We discussed the Northern Bank failure over here and the effect on that and other banks’ viability of the losses, which greatly exceed available coverage. That led to a fervent discussion of the primaries and odds re who will win the US election.