Latvia Exchange Program

Program Description

In 1998 the law school received a grant from the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs of the United States Information Agency to support a faculty exchange with the University of Latvia. The goal of the grant is for the schools to develop collegial professional relationships and the technological capability necessary to support the long-term, reliable exchange of expertise, ideas, and experience that will enhance the scholarship and teaching for both schools. This award was one of only two awards at the time for the entire Central and Eastern European region.

Professors Amy Bushaw, Ed Brunet, Steve Kanter, and Steve Johansen, as well as Dean James Huffman have all traveled to or will be traveling to Latvia as part of the project. We had a student in Latvia for the Fall 1999 semester working for a non-governmental organization on an externship for which she received a semester’s credit. In Spring of 1999 a Latvian student visited the law school for a semester and upon returning to Latvia worked with members of our faculty, the University of Latvia Faculty of Law, and the European Law Students Association of Latvia on projects that include developing an legal clinic, a street law program and legal curriculum and textbooks. The Soros Foundation provided direct funding for two years to support the work of the visiting student upon his return to Latvia.

Professor Bushaw’s work is concentrated in the area of teaching about the development of international and comparative commercial law. The two schools hope to develop teaching materials and methods suitable for use in both institutions. Professor Ed Brunet traveled to Latvia to introduce Latvian students to the concepts of mediation, arbitration and conflict resolution. Professors Johansen and Hansberger visited Latvia to help train Latvian lawyers in legal ethics and to work on the development of a clinic at the University of Latvia.

The law school hosted Professor Kalvis Torgans in September 1999. He is collaborating with Professor Bushaw in the area of commercial law. In August and September of 1999 we also were visited by Justice Anita Usacka, who is doing research on course work in legal and judicial ethics. She is also researching the areas of human rights, comparative constitutional law, European organizations and courts, and constitutional and international remedies for ethnic and linguistic minorities.

During the 2000-2001 academic year Professor Bushaw spent the fall semester in Latvia and additional visits will be made by other faculty. Professor Bushaw brought back a few photos from her trip and also maintains her own website about the program at: http://www.lclark. edu/~uslv