Monika Morkūnaitė
Judicial assistant, The Supreme Court of Lithuania
Vilnius, Lithuania
Scholarship: Online Summer Course on the Rule of Law in the European Union ((420SB11))
22 – 26 June 2020
“The Rule of Law is the its application has become the most debated topic in all Europe. Just for this reason, I believe that the better understanding of the idea of Rule of Law and the tools that can be used to unsure the EU law in national states, would be very useful to me at my work at the Court.” 26/06/2020 |  |
- Q & A with Monika Morkūnaitė
What is your legal background, your current occupation and country of work?
Currently, I work as Judicial assistant at the Supreme Court of Lithuania, which is the only court of cassation in the Republic of Lithuania.
How do you use European law in your current work?
In the Court my main specialisation is EU law, thus I have to deal with the cases related to various aspects of EU law andthe interaction between national and EU law. Sometimes it is necessary to draft the references for the preliminary ruling to the CJEU.
I am also in charge of the preparation of the legal material of national and international legal practice and doctrine and thepreparation of the drafts of the decisions of the Court. The Court receives many cases in which various aspects of EU law arise. In such instances it is necessary to look at European legal acts and the case-law of the Court of Justice of European Union (CJEU) in order to propose how certain aspects should be solved. Therefore, in all cases the Court has the obligation to ensure that EU law is properly applied.
What was your motivation for attending this particular event?
The Rule of Law is the fundamental principle of EU law and nowadays its content and application has become the most debated topic in all of Europe. Just for this reason, I believe that the better understanding of the idea of Rule of Law and the tools that can be used to ensure that EU law is applied correctly in national states (?), would be very useful for my work at the Court. It is also useful for my academic work as part of my thesis relates to EU law and instruments that are used to ensure its efficiency and uniform application.
How did you benefit from the scholarship?
The scholarship for attending the ERA Summer course was a valuable opportunity to become more familiar with this principle, recent developments of the case-law of CJEU and to discuss the possible outcomes and developments of this fundamental question in the future. As the Summer Course was also based on analysis of practical hypothetical cases, it encouraged interesting discussions among participants from various countries. During this Summer Course I have received a lot of insights and inspiration for my future work.
