Susana Sanz Caballero
Professor of Public International Law at CEU Cardenal Herrera University and ad hoc judge of European Court of Human Rights.
She holds a diploma as an expert in human rights protection from the International Institute of Human Rights (Strasbourg). She has obtained two Jean Monnet Chairs from the European Commission (in 2004 and 2017).
In 2012, Angel Herrera Research Award. In 2013, 2nd prize of the Spanish Conference of Rectors for research in development cooperation and 2nd prize of the Academy of Human Rights of the American University (Washington).
Author of 2 scientific books, 130 publications in international and national journals and book chapters, and coordinator of 8 collective books.
Jorge Cardona Llorens
Professor of Public International Law at the University of Valencia, where he heads the “Adolfo Miaja de la Muela” Department of International Law. A graduate in Law from the University of Valencia and a PhD from the same university, he also holds the Jean Monnet Chair of European Union Law and is an associate of the Institute of International Law.
His professional career combines university teaching with extensive activity as an international expert in human rights. He was a member of the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child for two consecutive terms (2011-2015 and 2015-2019) and served as an advisor to Spain on the Advisory Opinion of the International Court of Justice on the conformity with international law of Kosovo’s declaration of independence (2010). He is also a member of the National Council on Disability as an independent expert and of the High Advisory Council for the development of the 2030 Agenda of the Valencian Government. He has been awarded the Mahatma Gandhi Gold Medal for Peace by UNESCO.
Author of more than 200 scholarly publications, including books, chapters, and articles, his work focuses on the United Nations system, the international protection of human rights, and especially children’s rights, an area in which he is a national and international authority. He has supervised a dozen doctoral theses, several of which have received European Doctorate distinction.
Marta Pérez Gabaldón
Assistant Professor in the degrees of Political Science and Law. PhD in Political Science and Academic Secretary of CEU Cardenal Herrera University. She has a six-year research period and 2 five-year teaching periods.
She has received important awards such as the Prize of Les Corts Valencianes to the best research work presented in 2010 in the Valencian Universities and has participated in multidisciplinary research projects at both national and regional level.
Author of many publications, including 2 books, 14 book chapters and 14 articles in scientific journals.
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Rosa García Vilardell
Professor of State Ecclesiastical Law and Canon Law at CEU Cardenal Herrera University. PhD in Law from the University of Alicante. She has 2 six-year research periods and more than 20 years of teaching experience.
She is an auditor (examining magistrate) in matrimonial cases in the Ecclesiastical Tribunal of the Diocese of Orihuela Alicante and has participated in research projects at both national and regional level.
Author of many publications, including 3 books, 18 book chapters and 5 articles in scientific journals.
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Manuel Martínez Sospedra
Professor of Constitutional Law at CEU Cardenal Herrera University. Director of the working group that drafted the preliminary draft of the Statute of Autonomy known as Estatuto de Morella (1979) and author of one of the first manuals on the current Constitution, Introducción al Derecho Constitucional Español. La Constitución de 1978 (1980).
In 1988 he was elected senator for the Valencian Community, integrated in the CDS group of the Upper House, being spokesman in the Constitutional, Autonomy and Defense committees.
Author of many publications, including 22 books, 56 book chapters and 76 articles.
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Nuria Hernández García
Collaborating Professor PhD in Political Sciences at CEU Cardenal Herrera University.
During her PhD studies – cum laude – she completed two research stays at the Centre on Migration, Policy and Society at the University of Oxford.
Political Science and Journalism graduate, she has experience working in NGOs – Save the Children – think tanks – IECAH – and international organizations – Permanent Observer Mission of Spain to the Organization of American States. In addition, she participates in research projects at both national and regional level.
Author of several publications in scientific journals. She has taken part in national and international congresses in recent years.
Ainhoa Uribe Otalora
Professor of Political Science and Vice-Rector of Internationalization at CEU San Pablo University. PhD in Political Science from CEU Cardenal Herrera University and in Law from Complutense University. She has 2 six-year research periods and 2 five-year teaching periods.
She holds an Erasmus Mundus Master’s Degree in International Humanitarian Aid from the University of Deusto; and a Master’s Degree in Agents of Equal Opportunities for Men and Women from CEU Cardenal Herrera University. She has been awarded the Prize of Les Corts Valencianes to the best research work for her doctoral thesis in Political Science. She has done research stays at Oxford University and Georgetown University. She has participated in multidisciplinary research projects at both national and regional level.
Author of many publications, including 7 books, 32 book chapters, 5 articles in scientific journals, and editor of 5 books.
Jaume Suau
Jaume Suau Martínez is Associate Professor at the Blanquerna School of Communication and International Relations, Ramon Llull University, where he leads the DIGILAB research group. His research focuses on disinformation, media trust, digital journalism, media pluralism, and the impact of artificial intelligence on news consumption. He has coordinated and participated in numerous European research projects funded by the European Commission, the European Media and Information Fund, and the Spanish Ministry of Science, collaborating closely with institutions such as the European University Institute, Cardiff University, Newtral, and the European Federation of Journalists. His work combines experimental research, large-scale comparative surveys, and policy-oriented studies on media ecosystems across Europe. He has published extensively in leading international journals in communication and journalism and serves as Associate Editor of Journalism Practice. His research has made significant contributions to understanding democratic resilience against disinformation and the evolving challenges facing European media systems.
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Fruzsina Gárdos-Orosz
Senior research fellow at the Center for Social Sciences and Associate Professor at ELTE Law School, Budapest.
She has worked as a Civil Servant at the Hungarian Constitutional Court in different positions between 2003 and 2014. She is currently the Director of the Institute for Legal Studies of the Centre for Social Sciences, Centre of Excellence of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences. Her main research projects include works on constitutional adjudication in Europe and especially in Hungary.
Author of many publications in Hungarian and English languages, including 2 monographs and 11 edited volumes.
Helena Torroja
Professor of Public International Law at the University of Barcelona, Helena Torroja Mateu is a leading scholar in international law, human rights, international humanitarian law, and the rule of law.
Throughout a distinguished academic career spanning more than three decades, she has coordinated and led numerous national and international research projects, including competitive projects funded by the Spanish Ministry of Science. Her research focuses on the United Nations system, international responsibility, international criminal law, humanitarian action, and disaster law. She has published four monographs, edited several collective volumes and special issues in leading international journals, and authored numerous articles and book chapters in prestigious publishers and journals. She has held important academic leadership positions, including Academic Director of the Centre for International
Studies (CEI) of the University of Barcelona, and has coordinated master’s programmes in diplomacy
and international organizations. Professor Torroja has collaborated with institutions such as the United
Nations, the T.M.C. Asser Institute, the American University Washington College of Law, and New York
University, while actively contributing to scientific dissemination, editorial activities, and the training of
young researchers.
Davor Petrić
Davor Petrić is Senior Assistant and Postdoctoral Researcher in the Department of European Public Law at the Faculty of Law, University of Zagreb, where he also serves as Executive Editor of the Croatian Yearbook of European Law and Policy. He obtained his PhD in European Law summa cum laude with a dissertation on the interpretation of EU law and the preliminary ruling procedure. His research focuses on EU constitutional law, judicial protection, the rule of law, legal reasoning, and the jurisprudence of the Court of Justice of the European Union. He has been a visiting researcher at leading institutions
including the Court of Justice of the European Union, the Max Planck Institute for Comparative Public Law and International Law, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Hertie School Berlin, and University College Dublin. He teaches several undergraduate and postgraduate courses on EU law and has published
extensively in internationally recognized journals and edited volumes on judicial independence, preliminary references, constitutional interpretation, and the rule of law in the European Union.
Paulo Pinto
Paulo Pinto de Albuquerque is Full Professor of Law at the Catholic University of Portugal and one of Europe’s foremost authorities on human rights and criminal law. He served as Judge at the European Court of Human Rights between 2011 and 2020, where he delivered more than 160 judicial opinions
and held several leadership positions, including President of the Committee on the Rules of Court and Vice-President of one of the Court’s Sections. Throughout his career he has also served as a judge in Portuguese courts and has acted as adviser and speaker before numerous supreme and constitutional courts worldwide. His academic work has had a profound international impact, with an extensive body of publications including books, commentaries and articles on human rights, constitutional law, criminal
justice, and European law. He has received numerous international distinctions, including honorary
doctorates and awards recognizing his outstanding contribution to the protection of fundamental rights
and the development of European human rights jurisprudence.
Clara Portela
.Professor of Political Sciences at the University of Valencia. Advisor to the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) on the criminalization of sanctions violations (SOC 739 procedure). Her work has been awarded with the THESEUS Award for Promising Research on European Integration.
She is a Freie Universität Berlin Graduate and PhD from the European University Institute of Florence. She has been researcher at the European Union Institute for Security Studies (EUISS) and Professor of Political Science at Singapore Management University. She has also been Visiting Professor at the College of Europe, the OSCE Academy, Hitotsubashi University and SciencesPo Lyon. She has worked as a consultant for the European Commission, the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Japanese Ministry of International Trade and Industry.
Dario Čepo
Associated Professor in the Department of Sociology (Faculty of Law) at University of Zagreb. PhD in Comparative Politics from the same university.
He has been Press Office Assistant at the Hellenic Republic Embassy, an expert associate at Miroslav Krleža Lexicographic Institute and a Fullbright Fellow at Harriman Institute, Columbia University. Moreover, he has been member of the Coordination for Human Rights (City of Zagreb). He is currently member of the Croatian Political Science Association and of the European Consortium for Political Research.
Author of many publications, including one book, 10 book chapters, 6 articles in scientific journals, 3 policy briefs and reports, and has taken part in 11 workshops.
Mateja Čehulić
is a Senior Research Assistant at the Chair of Sociology, Faculty of Law, University of Zagreb. She holds a PhD in Sociology from the University of Zagreb, with a thesis on the characteristics of legal culture in Croatia, and completed a research stay at the International Institute for the Sociology of Law in Oñati, Spain.
Her research focuses on legal culture, judicial reform, and public trust in institutions. Recent publications include “Hiding behind Digitalisation: Judiciary Reform Strategies”, examining how digitalisation strategies affect institutional trust in the judiciary, and “Perspectives of Legal Culture: A Systematic Literature Review”. She has also studied youth satisfaction with democracy in Southeast Europe and the mobilisation of conservative religious-political movements.
She is a member of the Croatian Sociological Association and serves on the editorial board of the Croatian Sociological Review.
Dimitry V. Kochenov
is a Professor at the Department of Legal Studies, Central European University (CEU, Vienna), and Head of the Rule of Law Research Group at the CEU Democracy Institute (Budapest), where he founded the Rule of Law Clinic. He holds a PhD in Law from the University of Groningen and has held visiting positions at Princeton, Yale, Harvard, and the College of Europe, among others.
His research focuses on the rule of law, European citizenship, and mechanisms protecting against democratic backsliding. He has co-authored works such as EU Values Are Law, After All and EU Lawlessness Law at the EU-Belarusian Border, examining the instrumentalisation of migration crises as a hybrid threat, and has written extensively on judicial independence and democratic backsliding in EU Member States. He is currently co-editing the forthcoming EU Rule of Law Case-book (Hart Publishing) and Upholding the Rule of Law in the EU (Oxford University Press).
He has advised the European Parliament on rule of law protection mechanisms, and his work has been repeatedly cited by Advocates General of the Court of Justice of the EU.
Jan Wouters
is a Full Professor of International Law and International Organizations at KU Leuven, where he holds the Jean Monnet Chair ad personam “European Union and Global Governance” and is founding Director of the Institute for International Law and the Leuven Centre for Global Governance Studies. He holds a PhD in Law from KU Leuven and has held visiting positions at universities including Cambridge, Columbia, the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, and the College of Europe.
His research spans international and European law, global governance, and the protection of EU values, with a particular focus on the rule of law and its enforcement against democratic backsliding in Member States. He coordinated the European projects FRAME and RECONNECT, the latter dedicated to reconnecting European citizens with democracy and the rule of law, and has co-edited landmark works such as The Rule of Law and Areas of Limited Statehood (2021) and Upholding the Rule of Law in the EU (Oxford University Press, forthcoming). He has authored more than 800 publications, including books, articles, and chapters, on international law, international organizations, and global governance. He has advised institutions such as the European Parliament and the United Nations, and was appointed a member of the Arbitration Panel under the UK-EU Withdrawal Agreement. He is a Member of the Royal Academy of Belgium for Sciences and Arts.
Zoltán Szente
Research Professor at the Institute for Legal Studies of the Centre for Social Sciences in Budapest, Hungary, where he has also served as Deputy Director since 2020. He holds a law degree from József Attila University of Szeged (1990), a doctorate in 1998. From 2023 to 2024, he was a Fernand Braudel Senior Fellow in the Department of Law at the European University Institute (Florence).
His academic career includes over a decade as Professor of Law at the National University of Public Service in Budapest (2013–2023), as well as previous positions at Széchenyi István University (Győr) and Eötvös Loránd University (Budapest). He is Vice-President (2013-2023) of the Council of Europe’s Group of Independent Experts and, since 2019, Co-President of the Research Group on Constitutional Interpretation of the International Association of Constitutional Law (IACL). His research focuses on comparative constitutional and administrative law, constitutional theory, the rule of law, European constitutional history, and central-local government relations. He has directed international projects such as “Constitutional Risk Management in the V4 Countries” (Centre for Social Sciences) and “Democratic Efficacy and the Varieties of Populism in Europe” (Horizon 2020). Author of an extensive body of scholarly work focused on the erosion of the rule of law and populist constitutionalism in Central Europe, including the books “Constitutional Law in Hungary” with Fruzsina Gárdos-Orosz, “New Challenges to Constitutional Adjudication in Europe” and “Populist Challenges to Constitutional Interpretation in Europe and Beyond”.
Diego Mauri
Assistant Professor (tenure track) of International Law at the University of Palermo since 2022. PhD in Human Rights from the same university (2019), with a dissertation on lethal autonomous weapons systems in international humanitarian and human rights law, supervised by Professors Pasquale De Sena and Andrea Saccucci. He also holds an LL.M. from the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore in Milan and obtained Italian national accreditation as an Associate Professor (2022-2032).
Prior to his current position, he was a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Florence, where he worked on projects concerning international obligations in the face of CBRN (chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear) events and on new technologies and international law, in addition to being an adjunct professor in subjects such as genocide and international crimes. He completed a Visiting Scholarship at the University of Notre Dame Law School (2018), under the supervision of Professor Mary Ellen O’Connell, and has served as the Holy See’s delegate to the meetings of government experts on lethal autonomous weapons (CCW) in Geneva. He currently leads the HYDRA project (“Hybrid Threats versus Democratic Resilience”), funded by the Italian PRIN 2022-PNRR program.
His scholarly work focuses on autonomous weapons, new military technologies and their impact on international law, as well as the implementation of judgments of the European Court of Human Rights within the Italian legal system. He is the author of the monograph Autonomous Weapons Systems and the Protection of the Human Person and more than twenty-five articles and book chapters. In 2021, he received the award for best original article from the Italian Society of International and European Union Law (SIDI).