About SIPE (2003)

The Societas luris Publici Europaei e.V. [ SIPE ] has been founded in Frankfurt am Main in April 2003. The foundation goes back to an initiative of the Association of German constitutional law professors at its Würzburg meeting in October 2001 which took over a previous suggestion and created a relevant Initiative Committee. The Committee organized pre-foundation assembly in conjunction with the conference of German Law professors that took place in St. Gallen in October 2002, and which was also attended by numerous foreign professors of public law. The proposal of the Initiative Committee was discussed in detail; the idea to establish a European Association for Public Law was approved; and provisions for the drafting of articles of association were established. The under the influence of European law national legal systems of public law have to cope with many common problems. The ever-increasing impact of European law on national legal systems require both under European law as well as under national legal point of a stable and continuous scientific analysis and appreciation. The goal is a European law of public law. This is fertilized by law and working out uniform principles of law. As far as the existing European legal associations, bilateral lawyers' associations and international ad hoc colloquia must be added. In addition, the regular meetings of the newly formed Societas will create close personal links and thus promote the continuity of thoughts and experiences. This who: to promote the knowledge and the coalescence of the nation-state jurisdictions.

According to its statutes, the Societas has to discuss the task, questions of public law in Europe including its effect on the entire legal and scientifically clarified. The original idea to limit the effectiveness of the association on constitutional law, has been discarded. The importance of constitutional law in the context of public law comes but in the task of determination expressed by the fact that the effect on the entire law - hence, the meaning of constitutional law - is explicitly highlighted. Member of the SIPE may be, who is scientifically concerned with public law and this has especially proven by outstanding publications. Thought is primarily to full-time university teachers and qualified teachers of public law, but also to prominent practitioners of public law, and appropriate publications. There is a recording method that is initiated by the proposal of at least three members of the SIPE. The SIPE holds at least every two years from a General Assembly, which is to be connected to an academic conference. The conference languages are German, English and French. The language of the conference venue is also negotiating language, if a translation is ensured in one of these three languages. The statutes in the three languages of negotiation is placed on the Internet ( www.sipe-eu.de ) together with a list of members and other information on the Societas luris Publici Europaei.

The Board consists statutory minimum of five and maximum of seven members, while ensuring a regional balance. The members of the Board are elected for four years, in principle, it may not be re-elected as the President may not be reelected. The Constituent Assembly elected the following persons to the Board: Hartmut Bauer (Dresden) as Secretary General, Pedro Cruz Villalon (Madrid), Antonio D' Atena (Rome), Constance Grewe (Strasbourg), Julia Iliopoulos-Strangas (Athens), Heinz Schäffer (Salzburg) and Christian Starck (Göttingen) as president. In four years will provide an opportunity to expand the regional composition of the Board to Eastern Europe or England.

The first meeting of the SIPE will take place at the invitation of the Greek founding members in the period from 22 to 25 July 2004, on the island of Crete. The theme of the conference will be "The New European Union": 1 protection of fundamental rights in the New Union , 2 structures and functioning of European self-administration in the New Union.