Department of Public International Law

Research staff:

Assoc.Prof. Adam Wiśniewski, DSc (Head of the Department) [e-mail]

Assoc. Prof. Katarzyna Łasak, DSc [e-mail]

Assoc. Prof. Krzysztof Drzewicki, DSc [e-mail]

Paweł Kwiatkowski, PhD [e-mail]

Magdalena Łągiewska, PhD [e-mail]

Paulina Zajadło-Węglarz, PhD [e-mail]

Paweł Nowicki, MA [e-mail]

Department secretary:

Magdalena Drzycimska, MA

e-mail: sekretariat01@prawo.ug.edu.pl

Scientific development and research of the Department
on the 50th Anniversary of the Faculty of Law and Administration (1970-2020)

The history of the Department of Public International Law at the Faculty of Law and Administration of the University of Gdańsk is connected with Tricity academic traditions. In 1970 these took on an institutional form under the name of the Division of International Law, part of the Institute of Legal and Systemic Sciences. Professor Remigiusz Zaorski was the founder and first head of the Division and, subsequently, the Department of Public International Law. He was succeeded by Professor Józef Andrzej Straburzyński  and Professor Władysław Czapliński, and since 2010 the work of the Department has been directed by Professor Adam Wiśniewski.

The 50-year history of the Gdańsk Department of Public International Law is reflected in the wide range of issues that its professors and their colleagues have addressed over the past half-century. This history is defined by the study of international law of the sea and environmental law, international human rights protection, humanitarian law, the international judiciary, and intellectual property protection. The first of these thematic areas has a special place in Professor Remigiusz Zaorski's scientific achievements. He devoted five monographs and more than one hundred other publications to the issues of coastal authorities, free port areas, the interpretation of the Geneva Conventions on the law of the sea, and international legal aspects of the exploitation of biological resources of the sea. Professor Zaorski's scientific and organisational activity was accompanied by his involvement in the international forum.

The research tradition – initiated by the founder of the Gdańsk Department of International Law – was then continued by Professor Józef Andrzej Straburzyński, who also connected his academic biography with the international law of the sea. Developing this subject, he focused on the legal issues accompanying the proceedings of the third international conference on the law of the sea, fishing and exploitation of marine resources, the legal status of maritime areas and their delimitation, and shipping law. Professor Straburzynski's academic career was connected with public service. He served as an expert of the Polish delegation at the second session of the United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea in Caracas, as Poland’s delegate at the third session of the United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea in Geneva, and as director of the delegation of the Supreme Audit Office. He also contributed to the development of the institutional framework of the Polish science of maritime law as founder and vice-chairman of the Commission on Maritime Law at the Polish Academy of Sciences in Gdańsk and member of the editorial committee of its scientific journal.

Currently, the staff of the Department of Public International Law is composed of: Professor Adam Wiśniewski, Professor Krzysztof Drzewicki, Professor Katarzyna Łasak, Dr. Paweł Kwiatkowski, Dr. Magdalenia Łągiewska, Dr. Paulina Zajadło-Węglarz and Paweł Nowicki, MA.

The current head of the Department of Public International Law is Professor Adam Wiśniewski, whose academic achievements are distinguished by his interest in the international protection of human rights and the legitimacy of international courts. He dedicated his habilitation monograph to this subject, entitled: Koncepcja marginesu oceny w orzecznictwie Europejskiego Trybunału Praw Człowieka [The Doctrine of the Margin of Appreciation in the Case Law of the European Court of Human Rights], which was awarded first prize in the prestigious Państwo i Prawo competition. It also became the subject of a book entitled The European Court of Human Rights. Between Judicial Activism and Passivism, as well as dozens of scientific articles. His overseas internships and studies at Nuffield College of the University of Oxford were also associated with international human rights protection.

Professor Krzysztof Drzewicki's research interests include the areas of international human rights protection, the humanitarian law of armed conflicts, and the law of international organisations. Professor Drzewicki has devoted 128 publications and more than 40 unpublished works such as: papers, expert reports, descriptions of research projects, and translations of international conventions to these topics. Professor Drzewicki’s main scientific achievement is the contribution he made to the development of the theoretical-legal and methodological concept of human rights of the third generation, as author of the original monograph entitled Prawo do rozwoju: studium z zakresu praw człowieka [The Right to Development: a Study in Human Rights]. Professor Drzewicki combined his academic career with extensive consulting, research, implementation, and diplomatic activities.

The main focus of Professor Katarzyna Łasak's research is on the topic of international human rights protection, with particular emphasis on social rights. Professor Łasak devoted both her habilitation monograph entitled Prawa społeczne w orzecznictwie Europejskiego Trybunału Praw Człowieka [Social Rights in the Case Law of the European Court of Human Rights], as well as dozens of other publications that make up her academic work, to this topic. In addition to her academic activities, Professor Łasak has also served as an expert and instructor in international humanitarian law.

Dr. Paweł Kwiatkowski is developing studies conducted at the Gdańsk Department of Public International Law to reflect on the applications of scientific knowledge. His research interests combine the dogmatic analysis of international bioethics standards and their implementation in national legal orders with a studies on the social reception of genetics, which he links to investigations into the evolution of the normative limits of the functioning of scientific knowledge. A special place in his academic biography – in addition to articles on this subject – is occupied by his editorial work as  he serves as editor-in-chief of the international scientific journal Adam Mickiewicz University Law Review.

Dr. Magdalena Łągiewska focuses on international arbitration, international criminal law, diplomatic and consular law and the legal dimensions of the Belt and Road Initiative. She holds a multiple Ph.D. in legal sciences from the University of Gdańsk and East China University of Political Science and Law in Shanghai. She is also a research associate in the “China, Law and Development” project at the University of Oxford and a Director of the Confucius Institute at the University of Gdańsk.

Dr. Paulina Zajadło-Węglarz's research interests combine reflection on the protection of human rights with the study of issues associated with the interpretation of international criminal law. Dr Zajadło-Węglarz focused on this subject in her doctoral dissertation entitled Koncepcja Responsibility to Protect. Studium z prawa międzynarodowego [The Concept of the Responsibility to Protect. A Study in International Law] connecting reflection on the theoretical aspects of this innovative institution of public international law with an analysis of its practical application in international relations, and in a number of works of both national and international scope.

The history of the Gdańsk Department of Public International Law has been co-created by the  academic biographies of the numerous people who have contributed to its scientific and teaching life over the last fifty years. The international law of the sea and environmental law, the international protection of human rights, the humanitarian law of armed conflicts, the international judiciary, and the protection of intellectual property, occupied a special place in these biographies. These issues also influenced the Department's rich educational output. Its echoes are also present in the expert and diplomatic activities of its former and current employees, and in their involvement in the work of scientific units. Currently, the Department occupies an important place on the institutional map of the Polish science of public international law, while also being deeply involved in the process of educating new generations of academics and students.