EU training networks & structures

ERA’s objective is to promote the understanding and best practice of EU law by providing legal practitioners from across Europe with training and a forum for discussion and exchange.

Target groups

ERA works with all practitioners of law:

  • Judges, prosecutors and court staff
  • Lawyers in private practice, notaries and in-house counsel
  • Law enforcement officers and lawyers in public administration.

Types of training activities developed

ERA offers conferences and courses at different levels at its centre in Trier (near the EU’s judicial capital in Luxembourg), around Europe and online:

  • Annual conferences to review and debate the latest developments
  • Seminars focused on a specific developments for practitioners to explore in detail
  • Basic training courses as an introduction to a specific area of EU law
  • Legal language courses.

These events take place face-to-face, online or in a hybrid format.

ERA also provides:

  • e-Learning courses and resources
  • e-Presentations featuring top experts on EU law
  • A quarterly legal journal called ERA Forum.

ERA’s training programmes cover the full range of EU law:

  • European public law, e.g. institutional law, fundamental rights, asylum and immigration, environmental law, taxation
  • European private law, e.g. consumer protection, labour and social law, private international law, judicial co-operation in civil matters
  • European business law, e.g. competition law, public procurement, intellectual property rights, company law, banking and financial regulation
  • European criminal law, e.g. judicial cooperation in criminal matters, police cooperation, cybercrime, defence and victims’ rights.

Activities 2021

In 2021 ERA organised 209 training events attended by 9010 legal practitioners from 86 countries and territories. It also offered a catalogue of 630 e-presentations and numerous e-learning courses and online tools.

The participants professional backgrounds were:

  • Judges: 12%
  • Prosecutors: 10%
  • Court staff: 12%
  • Lawyers in private practice: 17%
  • In-house counsel: 4%
  • Law enforcement officers: 5%
  • EU officials: 10%
  • Ministry officials: 6%
  • Other civil servants: 7%
  • Academics: 6%
  • Foundation/NGO representatives: 3%
  • Other: 7%

(Total does not amount to 100% due to rounding)

International partnerships/agreements

A founding member of the European Judicial Training Network (EJTN), ERA was re-elected in 2022 as a member of the EJTN Steering Committee and Convenor of the Network's Working Group on Programmes. It also has strong relationships with national judicial training institutions, with several of which it has framework agreements for the joint organisation of training activities for judges and prosecutors.

ERA also partners regularly with the Council of the Bars and Law Societies of Europe (CCBE), European lawyers’ association such the European Criminal Bar Association, the European Employment Lawyers’ Association and the European Young Bar Association, as well as with over 20 national Bars across Europe.

History

ERA was established in 1992 on the initiative of the European Parliament. The founding patrons were the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, the Land of Rhineland-Palatinate, the City of Trier and the Friends of ERA Association. In the intervening years, all EU Member States have joined the foundation.

View a film about the origins of ERA here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DpNLUgYYAmU

Contact details

Academy of European Law (ERA)

Metzer Allee

D-54295 Trier - Germany

Tel.: +49 651 93737-0

E-mail: info@era.int

Number of staff: 72

Legal status: ERA is a non-profit public foundation.

Related link

ERA's website

Last update: 23/05/2023

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