Faculty welcomes 2015 Eurodevils

The Faculty of Advocates has welcomed the class of ‘15 to its Eurodevilscheme, with Parliament House becoming home for ten overseas lawyers.

Over the next 12 weeks, the group will learn about the Scottish bar and the Scottish legal system, while no doubt also educating their hosts in the ways of their own countries.

The Eurodevil Programme, which dates from the 1970s and is organised by the Faculty and the European Lawyers Association, provides an introductory course in Scots law and placements with a Court of Session/High Court judge as well as senior and junior counsel.

Contributors include Sir David Edward, QC, Lord Pentland and Lord Clarke, David Sellar, the former Lord Lyon King of Arms, and, as a past Eurodevil, Sabrina Jenquin, solicitor, Edinburgh University, will be able to provide a special insight with her talk, “What to expect from Eurodevilling”.

“(The Programme) is going to open my mind,” said Maria Teresa Prieto Palacios, from Spain, one of this year’s group. “It gives you a different perspective…you have another way of looking at the same object, another philosophy.”

Veronika Pfaffli, from Switzerland, said: “It is a great opportunity to meet Scottish advocates as well as other legal professionals and discuss the differences and similarities of the legal systems.”

Marco Imperiale, from Italy, added: “One thing I would like to stress is that I think every one of us is very grateful for the opportunity we have received from the Faculty of Advocates, because this Programme is very important for us, both from the professional and from the personal side.”

The scheme had gone into abeyance for a couple of years until it was re-established last year, and having seen it back in harness, co-ordinator Stephen O’Rourke, advocate, will be bowing out this summer.

“Following its relaunch last year, the European Lawyers Programme has once again brought very high calibre participants from across Europe to Edinburgh,” he said.

“I am very grateful to all support staff, members of Faculty and judges who have supported and continue to support the Programme, and who give so generously of their time.

“After seven years in the role of Faculty organiser, it is time for me to pass on the baton, and I’m pleased to say that Peter Sellar will be taking the Programme forward from 2016. I wish both Peter and the Programme well in the future.”

The others in the group are: Franco Sandoval Quispe and Cristina Reglero Real from Spain; Barbara Meyer and Martina Patricia Steiner from Switzerland; Roberto Longhi from Italy; Ana Pehar from Croatia; andCatriona Elisabeth McIntyre from Norway.