First International Conference of State Attorneys before National Courts
From 2 to 4 November 2021, the Slovenian State Attorney’s office welcomed state attorney offices and bodies with similar powers from around Europe to the First International Conference of State Attorneys before National Courts. This conference, taking place during Slovenia’s Presidency of the Council of the EU, was organised as part of the project “Improving efficiency of the state attorney’s office and the public prosecutor’s office”. Funded by the Structural Reform Support Programme of the European Commission and implemented by CILC, one of the main purposes of the project is to support the digitalisation of the business environment of the Slovenian State Attorney’s Office.
The three day event took place in a hybrid format, with some participants travelling to Ljubljana and others attending online via Zoom. It included presentations from the field of ICT, organisation of state agents in civil proceedings before national courts, as well as international networking and cooperation. There were also two round tables organised, one on the latest ICT trends and developments, as well as their impact on the work of state advocates through the perspective of different stakeholders, and one the potential advantages, benefits of international cooperation and networking. Speakers in the latter included representatives from Slovenia, the Netherlands, Norway, and the European Commission.
Participants, online and in-person, also got to enjoy some of Slovenia’s culture and cuisine through a gin tasting from the award-winning Broken Bones craft distillery and an opera performance from singers from the Opera Balet Ljubljana and Maribor. There was also a piano and dance performance by the Slovenian state champions in standard and Latin-American dances.
Representatives ended the conference with the promise to look towards continued networking and communication, potentially leading to the establishment of the International Conference/Association of Lawyers representing Government and Public Bodies.