American Professor participates in an International Constitutional Law Symposium
 |
|
Professor David Ritchie (Mercer University), Professor Jeffrey Brand-Ballard (George Washington University) and Professor José Juan Moreso (Pompeu Fabra University) |
Rio de Janeiro - On June 12 and 13, 2008, Professor Jeffrey Brand-Ballard from the Law School of the George Washington University participated in the International Symposium of Contemporary Legal Theories and Institutional Design. The program brought together some of the most respected experts in constitutional studies and philosophers from leading schools of Brazil, such as FGV-Rio, São Paulo State University (USP), and the University of Brasília (UnB).
Prof. Brand-Ballard participated in a round-table: “Moral Obligation of Judges to Apply the Law.” Prof. David Ritchie from Mercer University, Georgia, U.S.A; Prof. José Juan Moreso, law professor and president of the Pompeu Fabra University in Barcelona, Spain; and, Dr. Fernanda Duarte, Rio de Janeiro Federal Judge and Gama Filho Professor, were also present at this program.
Prof. Ballard was the guest speaker of the symposium’s closing session: “Should Judges Listen to Moral Arguments?” The symposium took an interdisciplinary approach at exploring moral and legal decision-making processes and contemporary arguments about Formalism and Particularism in ethics and law. The symposium also celebrated the historical and symbolic importance of the Law Campus of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, which formerly housed the Imperial Senate. The symposium was organized by Prof. Noel Struchnier from the National Law School of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (FND/UFRJ) in partnership with Prof. Adrian Sgarbi from the Law School of the Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro (PUC-Rio) and the U.S. Consulate in Rio de Janeiro, in order to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Brazilian Constitution. The program was also sponsored by the Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES, a department of the Brazilian Ministry of Education which sponsors and supports higher education), the Embassy of Spain, and book publisher Lumen Juris.
 |
 |
|
Professor Brand-Ballard, George Washington University, USA |
Professor David Ritchie,
University of Mercer,
Georgia, USA |
 |
|
International speakers, Professor Fábio Shecaira, from Federal University and Dr. Fernanda Duarte, Federal Judge and Gama Filho University Professor during one of the symposium's panels
at the National Law Faculty |
 |
|
Erik Holm-Olsen, Consul and Director of the Public Diplomacy Section at the U.S. Consulate in Rio de Janeiro, students, professors and law professionals at the symposium
(Photos: U.S. Consulate-RJ) | |
