Ladies and Gentlemen
Esteemed Colleagues and Distinguished Guests

We are honored to address you in our capacity as the President of the European Bars  Federation and the Dean of the Gdańsk Bar Association of Attorneys-at-Law on the occasion of the imminent Intermediate Meeting of the European Bars Federation (FBE) to be held from 5th to 7th October 2023 in Gdańsk.

This year, the Gdańsk Bar Association of Attorneys-at-Law has the honor of hosting the Intermediate Meeting, and it is with the utmost enthusiasm that we are welcoming legal experts from around the world to our vibrant city.

The main themes of this year’s autumn Congresses (Intermediate Meeting) in Gdańsk, will include the rule of law,  rebuilding of Ukraine and ChatGPT. The Intermediate Meeting provides an excellent opportunity to establish links among European Bars’ representatives and have closer dialogues as well as to develop cooperation models that can lead to positive changes in the European legal market in the future. We have invited distinguished lawyers from across Europe to share their impressive knowledge during the Intermediate Meeting.

As we delve into the heart of these discussions, we will not only hear from distinguished panelists who bring their expertise and experiences to the fore but also invite active participation from all those present. Through thought-provoking proposals, introductions, and dynamic panel discussions, we strive to cultivate platforms for dialogue, interaction, and shared learning.

The Intermediate Meeting constitutes not merely a platform for discourse but acts as a catalyst for collective introspection and growth. We aspire for it to serve as a source of inspiration, particularly for all the bar members among us who carve out their paths in these developing landscapes.

The themes of the meeting resonate deeply with the ethical challenges of our time, transcending geographical boundaries. We are excited through the FBE  Intermediate Meeting in Gdańsk to contribute to the discourse on these challenges, their implications, and potential solutions. We hope that our discussions will offer fresh perspectives and innovative ideas to the participants.

We are thrilled to invite you to participate in these amazing intellectual dialogues and discovery journeys. As the President of the European Bars Federation and the Dean of the Gdańsk Bar Association of Attorneys-at-Law, we warmly welcome each of you, Esteemed Colleagues and Friends, to join us at the upcoming Intermediate Meeting of the European Bars Federation (FBE) in October 2023. Together, we will shape the future of more ethical and informed legal practices, enhancing our professions and ensuring justice in ever-changing worlds.

Magdalena Witkowska
Magdalena WitkowskaDean of the Council of the
Gdansk Bar Association of attorneys-at-law
Magdalena Witkowska
Izabela KonopackaPresident of the European Bars Federation
(FBE)

Speakers

Bio
Włodzimierz Chróścik
Włodzimierz ChróścikPresident of the National Bar Council of Attorneys-at-law
Bio
Tamara Ćapeta
Tamara ĆapetaAdvocate General at the Court of Justice of the European Union
Bio
Maria Dymitruk
Maria DymitrukThe Wroclaw Bar Association of Attorneys of Law
Bio
David Alexander Ogilvy Edward
David Alexander Ogilvy EdwardFormer Judge of the Court of Justice of the European Communities, 1992-2004
Bio
Anna Adamska – Gallant
Anna Adamska – GallantInternational key expert for PravoJustice.eu
Bio
Giulia Gentile
Giulia GentileEssex Law School
Bio
Oleksandr Gryban
Oleksandr GrybanInvestment Team Lead at Advantage Ukraine, former Deputy Minister of Economy of Ukraine
Bio
Volodymyr Halchenko
Volodymyr HalchenkoKyiv Region Bar Association
Bio
Charles Kerrigan
Charles KerriganPartner in International Law Firm CMS London
Bio
Basil Kerski
Basil KerskiDirector of the European Solidarity Centre
Bio
Tomasz Koncewicz
Tomasz KoncewiczUniversity of Gdańsk
Bio
Izabela Konopacka
Izabela KonopackaPresident of the European Bars Federation (FBE)
Bio
Oleksandr Kravets
Oleksandr KravetsPartner at TEFFI Law Firm
Bio
Raffaele Sabato
Raffaele SabatoJudge of the European Court of Human Rights
Bio
Francesco Spina
Francesco SpinaMember of the FBE New Technology Commission
Bio
Tomasz Wardyński
Tomasz WardyńskiFounding Partner of Wardyński & Partners
Bio
Marc de Werd
Marc de WerdSenior Justice at the Amsterdam Court of Appeal
Bio
Wojciech Wiewiórowski
Wojciech WiewiórowskiEuropean Data Protection Supervisor
Bio
Magdalena Witkowska
Magdalena WitkowskaGdańsk Bar Association of Attorneys-at-Law
Bio
Joanna Wsołek
Joanna Wsołek The Kraków Bar Association
Bio
Wojciech Zalewski
Wojciech ZalewskiDean of the Faculty of Law and Administration, University of Gdansk
Bio
Georg Ziegler
Georg ZieglerAdvisor in the Ukraine Service, European Commission

Programme

12:30 pm
12:30 pm - 7:00 pm

Registration

Location: Mercure Gdansk Stare Miasto Hotel (Jana Heweliusza 22 Street, Gdansk)

1:30 pm
1:30 pm - 3:00 pm

Meeting of the FBE Presidency

Location: Mercure Gdansk Stare Miasto Hotel (Jana Heweliusza 22 Street, Gdansk)

3:00 pm
3:00 pm - 4:30 pm

FBE Presidency meeting with Presidents of the Commissions

Location: Mercure Gdansk Stare Miasto Hotel (Jana Heweliusza 22 Street, Gdansk)

4:30 pm
4:30 pm - 5:00 pm

Coffee break

Location: Mercure Gdansk Stare Miasto Hotel (Jana Heweliusza 22 Street, Gdansk)

5:00 pm
5:00 pm - 6:30 pm

Meeting of the Commissions FBE

Location: Mercure Gdansk Stare Miasto Hotel (Jana Heweliusza 22 Street, Gdansk)

8:00 pm

Welcome Reception

Location: Artus Court (Długa 46/47 Street, Gdańsk)

Dress code: business casual

9:30 am
9:30 am - 10:00 am

Registration

Location: European Solidarity Centre (Solidarności 1 Street, Gdańsk)

Translations: PL EN DE ES FR IT

10:00 am
10:00 am - 10:30 am

Opening and Welcome Addresses

Izabela Konopacka, attorney-at-law, President of The European Bars Federation, Poland

Guests speeches:
Aleksandra Dulkiewicz, Mayor of Gdańsk, Poland

Basil Kerski, Director of the European Solidarity Centre

Włodzimierz Chróścik, attorney-at-law, President of the National Bar Council of Attorneys-at-Law

Professor Wojciech Zalewski, Dean of the Faculty of Law and Administration, University of Gdansk, Poland

Bartosz Golejewski, attorney-at-law, Dean of the Pomeranian Bar Association

Speech by the host of the Congress:
Magdalena Witkowska, attorney-at-law, Dean of the Council of the Gdansk Bar Association of Attorneys-at-Law

10:30 am
10:30 am - 12:00 pm
1st Discussion Panel

Trajectories of the European Rule of Law. Assumed? Contested? Defended? Revealed?

Moderator:
Professor Tomasz Tadeusz Koncewicz, attorney-at-law, University of Gdańsk, Poland

Discussants:
Professor Tamara Ćapeta, Advocate General at the Court of Justice of the European Union, University of Zagreb, Croatia

Professor Sir David A. O. Edward, Former Judge of the Court of Justice of the European Communities, 1992-2004, University of Edinburgh, (online), United Kingdom

Raffaele Sabato, Judge of the European Court of Human Rights, France

Tomasz Wardyński, attorney-at-law, Founding Partner of Wardyński & Partners, Poland

Professor Marc de Werd, Senior Justice at the Amsterdam Court of Appeal, University of Amsterdam, The Netherlands

12:00 pm
12:00 pm - 12:30 pm

Coffee break

12:30 pm
12:30 pm - 1:45 pm
2nd Discussion Panel

Rebuilding Ukraine and Paving its path to Europe: What role for the law and the lawyers?

Moderator:
Joanna Wsołek, attorney-at-law, The Kraków Bar Association, Poland

Panelists:
Anna Adamska-Gallant, PhD, attorney-at-law, international key expert for PravoJustice.eu, Poland

Oleksandr Kravets, attorney-at-law, Partner at TEFFI Law Firm, former Judge of the Appellate Court in Odessa, Ukraine

Oleksandr Gryban, Investment Team Lead at Advantage Ukraine, former Deputy Minister of Economy of Ukraine, (online), Ukraine

Volodymyr Halchenko, attorney-at-law, Kyiv Region Bar Association

Georg Ziegler, Advisor in the Ukraine Service in DG Neighbourhood and Enlargement Negotiations, European Commission, (online), Brussels

1:45 pm
1:45 pm - 2:45 pm

Lunch

2:45 pm
2:45 pm - 4:00 pm
3rd Discussion Panel

The Implications of AI and ChatGPT for Lawyers and Legal Services

Moderator:
Maria Dymitruk, attorney-at-law, The Wroclaw Bar Association of Attorneys-at-Law, Poland

Panelists:
Giulia Gentile, PhD, Essex Law School, (online), The United Kingdom,

Charles Kerrigan, Partner of International Law Firm CMS, (online), The United Kingdom

Francesco Spina, attorney-at-law, Member of the FBE New Technology Commission, Italy

Professor Wojciech Wiewiórowski, European Data Protection Supervisor, University of Gdańsk,  European Union/Poland

4:00 pm

Closing remarks

8:00 pm

Gala dinner

Location: Olivia Star Top 34th Floor (Grunwaldzka 472 C Street, Gdańsk)

Dress code: black tie

10:00 am
10:00 am - 11:00 am

Forum des Bâtonniers

Location: Mercure Gdansk Stare Miasto Hotel (Jana Heweliusza 22 Street, Gdansk)

Translations: PL EN DE ES FR IT

11:00 am
11:00 am - 1:00 pm

General Assembly

Location: Mercure Gdansk Stare Miasto Hotel (Jana Heweliusza 22 Street,   Gdansk)

1:00 pm
1:00 pm - 2:00 pm

Lunch

Location: Mercure Gdansk Stare Miasto Hotel (Jana Heweliusza 22 Street,  Gdansk)

2:30 pm

Sightseeing for FBE members and accompanying persons

8:00 pm
Thursday, 5th October

Welcome Reception

Location: Artus Court (Długa 46/47 Street, Gdansk)

Dress code: business casual

11:00 am
11:00 am - 12:30 pm
Friday, 6th October

Cruise around Gdansk – Motława River

Location: Rybackie Pobrzeże Street, 80-888 Gdańsk

The organizer reserves the right to modify the presented part of the program, depending on the number of participants.

12:30 pm
12:30 pm - 2:00 pm
Friday, 6th October

Gdansk Sightseeing

Location: Długa Street

2:00 pm
2:00 pm - 3:00 pm
Friday, 6th October

Lunch at the European Solidarity Centre

Location: European Solidarity Centre (Solidarności 1 Street, Gdańsk)

3:00 pm
3:00 pm - 5:00 pm
Friday, 6th October

Visit at the European Solidarity Centre - Permanent Exhibition

Location: European Solidarity Centre (Solidarności 1 Street, Gdańsk)

 

8:00 pm
Friday, 6th October

Gala dinner

Location: Olivia Star (Grunwaldzka 472 C Street, Gdańsk)

Dress code: black tie

2:30 pm
Saturday, 7th October

Sightseeing for FBE members and accompanying persons

Mercure Gdańsk
Stare Miasto

Located in the vicinity of historic Gdańsk, the most beautiful views of the city skyline.

Find out more ...

Partners

Contact

E-mail: FBE-IM@oirp.gda.pl
Tel.: +48 502 509 930
(8:00 AM – 3:00 PM)

The Gdansk Bar Association of Attorneys-at-law Okręgowa Izba Radców Prawnych w Gdańsku

Nowe Ogrody 35 Street,
80-803 Gdańsk,
Poland

ORGANISING COMMITTEE

Jakub PuszkarskiHead of Organising Committee, program +48 667 568 614
Adam KaczkoParticipants, translations +48 600 314 254
Adam ChudzińskiPublic relations, program +48 509 189 301
Paulina TopolskaProgram +48 695 565 154
Anna Narodzonek Hotels, congress venue +48 515 831 570
Paulina Minkiewicz Program for accompanying persons +48 698 821 128
Tomasz Gryczan Finance, invoices +48 691 696 643
Tomasz Palak Promotion, marketing +48 608 703 804
Marta Reliszko Welcome Reception marta.reliszko@oirp.gda.pl(8:00 AM - 3:00 PM)
Krzysztof Jóźwiak Public relations, promotion +48 663 545 639
Mateusz Smoliński Gala Dinner +48 662 177 996

Registration closed

The FBE Intermediate Meeting is open to FBE Members and others who register their participation in the meeting on the basis of the application form sent to the Organizers via the application form below and pay the fee in accordance with the fee charged in the form.

FBE MEMBERS AND ACCOMPANYING PERSONS

The FBE Intermediate Meeting is open to FBE Members who register their participation in the meeting on the basis of the application form sent to the Organizers via the application form below and pay the fee in accordance with the fee charged in the form.

For participants, the registration fee is 490 euro and this fee includes the Welcome Reception on Thursday, the working sessions, the documents, the lunches and coffee breaks on Friday and Saturday as well as the Gala Dinner on Friday. Sightseeing on Saturday is also included.

For accompanying persons, the registration fee is 200 euro and this fee includes a one-day guided visit and the lunch on Friday, the Welcome Reception on Thursday, and the Gala Dinner on Friday. Sightseeing on Saturday is also included.