Illinois Global Institute

As the home to the area and global studies centers and thematic programs at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, the Illinois Global Institute is dedicated to fostering an environment where international perspectives are integral to teaching and research.

Center for African Studies * Center for East Asian and Pacific Studies * Center for Global Studies * Center for Latin American and Caribbean Studies * Center for South Asian and Middle Eastern Studies * Center for the Study of Global Gender Equity * European Union Center * LAS Global Studies * Lemann Center for Brazilian Studies * Russian, East European, and Eurasian Center * The Program in Arms Control and Domestic and International Security

 

Restoring the Rule of Law after Democratic Decay: Lessons from Poland

Mar 27, 2025   12:00 pm  
College of Law Faculty Lounge, 504 E. Pennsylvania Avenue (second floor), Champaign, IL 61820
Lecture
Sponsor
European Union Center; Program in Constitutional Theory, History and Law
E-Mail
eucenter@illinois.edu
Views
279
Originating Calendar
European Union Center Events

Speaker: Francesco Biagi, Associate Professor of Comparative Public Law, University of Bologna & Visiting Professor, University of Illinois College of Law

How can nations restore the rule of law after their legal and democratic institutions have decayed? Poland is a contemporary case study. Between 2015 and 2023, Poland experienced a period of profound democratic backsliding under the populist Law and Justice Party. In October 2023, however, a new centrist government, led by Donald Tusk, took control of parliament. It is now on a mission to restore democracy and the rule of law in Poland. That process is difficult and hazardous because the old Law and Justice Party still controls some key state institutions, including the presidency and the constitutional court. Is it legitimate for Poland’s new government to take undemocratic and even illegal steps in the name of restoring democracy and the rule of law? If not, what are the alternatives? And what lessons does Poland offer to other nations that have experienced and seek to correct episodes of democratic decay? 

Sponsored by the European Union Center and the Program in Constitutional Theory, History and Law

A limited number of lunches available for attendees, beginning at 11:45 am.

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