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31 Juridica Int'l 1 (2022)

handle is hein.journals/jurdint31 and id is 1 raw text is: https://doi.org/10.12697/JI.2022.31.00

Dear reader,
In 2022, we are celebrating several important anniversaries related to the adoption of
laws important for the building of the Estonian legal order. Against the backdrop of
a major forum for the Estonian legal profession - Estonian Lawyers' Days 100 - this
year's edition is dedicated to another important anniversary: the 70th birthday of the
University of Tartu's Professor Emeritus Paul Varul.
It is difficult to overestimate Prof. Varul's contribution to the rebuilding of the
Estonian legal system after regaining of independence. In this connection, I would like
to draw special attention to his belief in young lawyers. Thanks to his support, many of
the students from those days now hold positions that play an essential role in the legal
profession. It is precisely this belief in young people alongside respect for more sea-
soned peers that Prof. Varul's colleagues and students alike have inherited from him.
In addition, there are many important qualities to be learnt from his example, such as
the importance of infinite kindness and patience, the fundaments of academic ability,
and the value of charm and personality. While he was the main architect of Estonia's
civil-law system in general, Prof. Varul's favourite area of attention over the years has
always been bankruptcy law, which he has been intimately involved in reforming. His
willingness to speak up and actively contribute to the legislative process is testimony to
the jubilarian's thoughtfulness and continuing high level of professionalism.
In this edition of the journal, readers will find an article by Chirstoph G. Paulus, a
long-time colleague of Prof. Varul, which is dedicated to bankruptcy law. It provides a
historical overview of the relationship between debtors and creditors and analyzes the
contracting process as eternal struggle for supremacy. Silvia Kaugia and Raul Narits
devote their article to finding an answer to the question of how to create a law that
corresponds to the idea of law. In this issue, the reader can also find a paper written by
Katre Luhamaa and Merike Ristikivi about the role of the judiciary in the transitional
debates, judicial reform, and changes in the professional requirements set for judges
in Estonia. Modern problems of the independence of the judiciary are reflected upon
specifically in an article contributed by Jesus Manuel Villegas Fernandez and Victoria
Rodriguez-Blanco, and Anneli Albi's article examines another angle of the ongoing
evolution: the changing role of courts in Europe - which is shifting from protecting
the fundamental rights of individuals toward protection of the neoliberal economic
order. Alongside these pieces are three articles dedicated to matters of criminal law.
Mari-Liis Tohvelmann and Kristjan Kask have focused their contribution on inter-
views with children as evidence in criminal proceedings; Carri Ginter and Anneli Soo
offer the reader a meaningful analysis of the arguments for and against the crimi-
nalisation of hate speech; and, finally, Mario Truu discusses the principle of foresee-
ability of liability and punishment in the practice of the ECHR. The volume meshes
well with Prof. Varul's ethos in one other respect too: doctoral students have had a
say in the publication, representing younger voices. One can find a discussion cen-
tred on the need to use artificial intelligence in the context of deciding on the patent-
ability of an invention, provided by Liva Rudzite, and the concept of the duty of dili-
gence in procurement law from the standpoint of CJEU practice is tackled by Kadri
Harginen. Finally, the fine tradition of publishing opinions by official opponents in
public defence of doctoral dissertations has been maintained, with the opinion writ-
ten by Marta Otto on the dissertation of Seili Suder.
Congratulations to Professor Emeritus Paul Varul and to all who have had the
opportunity to know him. We are all richer for your work.
Irene Kull
Professor of Civil Law

JURIDICA INTERNATIONAL 31/2022

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