In the year 2000, the Faculty continued in the direction set in previous years towards enhancing the quality of teaching and strengthening its international character.

The reconstruction of the Master’s syllabus in the Law study programme was successfully completed. The new extended syllabus now includes several new subjects designed to deepening students’ practical skills (Collective Bargaining, The European Court Case Law, Legal Aspects of Product Responsibility, Social Security of Self-Employed Individuals), as well as those with an international or pro-European dimension (International Corporate Law, International Economic Law). Professionals from abroad also took part in the teaching of some of the subjects. There was a continuing trend of teaching in two languages (The European Court Case Law, International Refugee Law). Other courses of this type have reached the preparatory or syllabus approval stages. As in the past, some teachers obtained assistance from the Jan Huss Foundation in the introduction of new courses.

The faculty has proceeded to implement the so-called external credit system. It has enabled students from other MU faculties to study individual subjects of Master’s studies (a total of 300 places are offered in individual compulsory subjects, i.e. 10 places per one compulsory subject), with only a minimum response from students.

A detailed plan for teaching ten subjects in foreign languages has been developed and will be offered on the basis of student interest.

The specialised three-year Bachelor’s programme in real-estate law and on the theory and practice of the preliminary criminal proceedings continued, and new local administration and social security law courses were started.

At present, the Faculty of Law has 2057 students (including 179 foreigners) enrolled in the Master’s programme and 154 students in the Bachelor’s programme.

The post-graduate programme has 85 students (one of which is a foreign student enrolled in an a full-time programme). The trends towards improving the quality of full-time programmes continued.

Research work was concentrated in eight grant projects. The results of the projects appeared in 14 monographs in by the Faculty teaching staff published in the Czech Republic. A total of 246 original articles and research papers (including papers in proceedings) was published, 38 of which were published abroad.

The publication of both faculty yearbooks (Orbis Iuris Romani and European Law Yearbook) continued, as did the publication of the faculty law magazine. Creative and scholarly activities of faculty teachers were also reflected in their degrees: two of them successfully defended their Associate Professorship dissertations. Two senior lecturers completed their doctorate studies and acquired the Ph.D. degrees.

Bringing the results of research work into practice is being implemented in the same way as in the past, predominantly by preparing expert opinions for state institutions and by the participation of faculty teachers in the legislative work of state bodies. The faculty also organizes a large number of lectures for the wider legal and interested public. Several faculty teachers took part in the Czech-French course of European Administration organised in conjunction with the University of Rennes.

Last year faculty teachers published 17 textbooks and lecture notes (for the use in the CR only). Some of their textbooks are being published in the second revised and enlarged editions.

In 2000, the MU Faculty of Law organised 4 conferences. Faculty teachers took part in 78 conferences and seminars, 45 of which were organised abroad.

Faculty students were also active in research: 22 of them participated in the second year of renewed competition held in conjunction with Student Research Activities (SVOC).

International relationships were further developed, both on the research and pedagogical levels. As every year, the Faculty welcomed a group of teachers from the John Marshall School in Chicago. Their programme included, besides social events and programme of lectures, a discussion meeting with students.

The faculty played host to a total of 35 guests from abroad, most of whom gave a lecture at classes. New contacts were made with the Faculty of Law of the University of Aberystwyth (Great Britain) and contacts with law faculties in Slovakia were gradually being re-established.

Faculty teachers went on 80 study-stays abroad. There was a considerable increase in the number of students attending short courses and long study-stays (44) at universities abroad. Twelve of these were made possible through the SOCRATES ERASMUS programme.