The Law School of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki is considered one of the most prestigious Greek law schools. It is ranked first among the Greek law schools and is considered one of the 200 best law schools in the world.
History
The law department was founded and began its operation in 1930 during the premiership of Alexandros Papanastassiou. One of the first 5 faculties of the
Aristotle University of Thessaloniki
Aristotle (; grc-gre, Ἀριστοτέλης ''Aristotélēs'', ; 384–322 BC) was a Greek philosopher and polymath during the Classical period in Ancient Greece. Taught by Plato, he was the founder of the Peripatetic school of phil ...
was the Faculty of Law and Economics consisting of two departments, Law Department and Economics and Political Science Department. A special committee took place (composed of Professors A. Andreades, K. Varvaressos, S. Seferiades and C. Sfiris) in order to elect the first professors of the Law school; Periklis Vizoukides (who was the first Dean of the faculty and afterwards rector of the
Aristotle University of Thessaloniki
Aristotle (; grc-gre, Ἀριστοτέλης ''Aristotélēs'', ; 384–322 BC) was a Greek philosopher and polymath during the Classical period in Ancient Greece. Taught by Plato, he was the founder of the Peripatetic school of phil ...
), Professor of Civil Law,
Xenophon Zolotas
Xenophon Euthymiou Zolotas ( el, Ξενοφών Ζολώτας, 26 April 1904 – 10 June 2004) was a Greek economist and served as an interim non-party Prime Minister of Greece.
Life and career
Born in Athens on 26 April 1904. He graduated fro ...
Politic Economy professor, Jean Spiropoulos Professor of International Law, Dimosthenis Stefanides Politic Economy professor and Thrasivoulos Haralambides Professor of Commercial law. Lately in '00s, Faculty of Law and Economics was expanded with Political Science department and hence was renamed into Faculty of Law, Economics and Political Science. In 1962 the graduate program (the first LLM in Greece) of the law school began its operation. Law school takes part in many international law competitions such as Ph. Jessup Moot Court International competition. In this competition, Law School of Thessaloniki in 2005 came 1st among 600 universities from all over the world (in the writing part of the competition), 5th in 2001, 4th in 2004 (in the writing part of the competition), 6th in 2007 and 5th in 2008, 3rd in 2009. In addition, in 2011 law school came first in Europe as it participated in a competition which was organized by the
World Trade Organization
The World Trade Organization (WTO) is an intergovernmental organization that regulates and facilitates international trade. With effective cooperation
in the United Nations System, governments use the organization to establish, revise, and ...
, accomplishing to beat popular law schools such as Oxford's, King's College and LSE's law schools.
''Pr. Ioannis Deligiannis'' Library
Dean Pr. Dimitrios Papasteriou took initiative to organize Law school's library and hence the library was established in 1998. It is located on the third floor of the Faculty of Law, Economics and Political Science. It is called ''Pr. Ioannis Deligiannis'' library in the honour of the popular civil law professor (and rector of the
Aristotle University of Thessaloniki
Aristotle (; grc-gre, Ἀριστοτέλης ''Aristotélēs'', ; 384–322 BC) was a Greek philosopher and polymath during the Classical period in Ancient Greece. Taught by Plato, he was the founder of the Peripatetic school of phil ...
) Ioannis Deligiannis. Until recently, most books were kept in law school's departments. Pr. Deligiannis library has acquired donations by famous professors and politicians such as
Alexandros Papanastasiou
Alexandros Papanastasiou ( el, Αλέξανδρος Παπαναστασίου; 8 July 1876 – 17 November 1936) was a Greek lawyer, sociologist and politician who served twice as the Prime Minister of Greece in the interwar period, being a pione ...
Alexandros Svolos
Alexandros Svolos ( el, Αλέξανδρος Σβώλος; 1892, Kruševo, Manastir Vilayet, Ottoman Empire – 22 February 1956, Athens, Greece) was a prominent Greek legal expert, who also served as president of the Political Committee of Natio ...
, Themistoklis Tsatsos, H. Muller etc. In addition the US government has made a donation to the library. ''Pr. Deligiannis'' library is the largest law library in Greece.
Notable alumni and professors
The law school has produced leaders in law, government, and society, including:
* Gianna Angelopoulos-Daskalaki, Greek politician and businesswoman, named as one of the 50 most powerful women by
Forbes
''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also r ...
magazine. She was the president of the Organizing Committee for the 2004 Summer Olympics in
Athens
Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...
,
Greece
Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders ...
. She studied law at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki.
*
Evangelos Venizelos
Evangelos Venizelos (, ; born 1 January 1957) is a Greek academic and politician who was Deputy Prime Minister of Greece and Minister for Foreign Affairs from 25 June 2013 to 27 January 2015. Previously, he was Deputy Prime Minister and Ministe ...
, President of the
Panhellenic Socialist Movement
The Panhellenic Socialist Movement ( el, Πανελλήνιο Σοσιαλιστικό Κίνημα, Panellínio Sosialistikó Kínima, ), known mostly by its acronym PASOK, (; , ) is a social-democratic political party in Greece. Until 2012, it ...
, former
Deputy Prime Minister
A deputy prime minister or vice prime minister is, in some countries, a government minister who can take the position of acting prime minister when the prime minister is temporarily absent. The position is often likened to that of a vice president ...
Constitutional Law
Constitutional law is a body of law which defines the role, powers, and structure of different entities within a state, namely, the executive, the parliament or legislature, and the judiciary; as well as the basic rights of citizens and, in fe ...
at the Law School of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki.
*
Vassilis Vassilikos
Vassilis Vassilikos ( el, Βασίλης Βασιλικός, born 18 November 1934) is a Greek writer and diplomat.
Biography
He was born in Kavala to parents native to the island of Thasos. His father was an MP with the Liberal Party. He grew u ...
, Writer and diplomat.
* Vassilios Nikopoulos, President of the Supreme Court.
*
Christos Sartzetakis
Christos Sartzetakis ( el, Χρήστος Σαρτζετάκης; 6 April 1929 – 3 February 2022) was a Greek jurist and a supreme justice of the Court of Cassation, who served as the President of Greece from 1985 to 1990.
Early life and educ ...
, Greek jurist and elder statesman. He entered the Law Faculty of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki in 1946, and received his degree in 1950, after which he practiced law in
Thessaloniki
Thessaloniki (; el, Θεσσαλονίκη, , also known as Thessalonica (), Saloniki, or Salonica (), is the second-largest city in Greece, with over one million inhabitants in its metropolitan area, and the capital of the geographic region of ...
. He was the unyielding prosecutor in the sensational case of the assassination of the left-wing member of parliament
Grigoris Lambrakis
Grigoris Lambrakis ( el, Γρηγόρης Λαμπράκης; 3 April 1912 – 27 May 1963) was a Greek politician, physician, track and field athlete, and member of the faculty of the School of Medicine at the University of Athens. A member of ...
, committed on 22 May 1963 in
Thessaloniki
Thessaloniki (; el, Θεσσαλονίκη, , also known as Thessalonica (), Saloniki, or Salonica (), is the second-largest city in Greece, with over one million inhabitants in its metropolitan area, and the capital of the geographic region of ...
by far-right extremists. On 9 March 1985 he was elected by the
Greek Parliament
The Hellenic Parliament ( el, Ελληνικό Κοινοβούλιο, Elliniko Kinovoulio; formally titled el, Βουλή των Ελλήνων, Voulí ton Ellínon, Boule of the Hellenes, label=none), also known as the Parliament of the He ...
as
President of the Hellenic Republic
The president of Greece, officially the President of the Hellenic Republic ( el, Πρόεδρος της Ελληνικής Δημοκρατίας, Próedros tis Ellinikís Dimokratías), commonly referred to in Greek as the President of the Rep ...
for one 5-year term, succeeding
Konstantinos Karamanlis
Konstantinos G. Karamanlis ( el, Κωνσταντίνος Γ. Καραμανλής, ; 8 March 1907 – 23 April 1998), commonly anglicised to Constantine Karamanlis or just Caramanlis, was a four-time prime minister and twice as the president of ...
international law
International law (also known as public international law and the law of nations) is the set of rules, norms, and standards generally recognized as binding between states. It establishes normative guidelines and a common conceptual framework for ...
from the
University of Thessaloniki
A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, t ...
in 1971. Professor of public international law and Community law at the law faculty of the University of Thrace, he acted as legal advisor at national and international level; in particular, he was a Member of the Greek Delegation to the
General Assembly
A general assembly or general meeting is a meeting of all the members of an organization or shareholders of a company.
Specific examples of general assembly include:
Churches
* General Assembly (presbyterian church), the highest court of presb ...
of the UN from 1983 and Chairman of the Committee of Experts for the Improvement of the Procedure under the Convention of Human Rights of the Council of Europe from 1989 to 1992. Furthermore, he was judge of the European Court of Justice
* Pelayia Yessiou-Faltsi, Professor of Civil Procedure law and honorary attorney at the Supreme Court
*
Andreas Loverdos
Andreas Loverdos ( el, Ανδρέας Λοβέρδος ; born 15 May 1956) is a Greek politician who was Minister for Education and Religious Affairs from 2014 to 2015.
Early life
Loverdos was born in Patras. He graduated from the law school of ...
, former Minister for Health and Social Solidarity and professor of Constitutional Law
*
Dimitris Sioufas
Dimitris Sioufas ( el, Δημήτρης Σιούφας; 15 August 1944 . – 11 January 2019) was a
Speaker of the Hellenic Parliament
The President of the Hellenic Parliament ( el, Πρόεδρος της Βουλής των Ελλήνων) is the presiding officer of the Parliament of Greece. The president's term coincides with the term of the assembly, and is chosen by a vot ...
*
Philippos Petsalnikos
Filippos Petsalnikos ( el, Φίλιππος Πετσάλνικος; 1 December 1950 – 13 March 2020) was a Greek politician of Macedonian origin for the Movement of Democratic Socialists. From 2009 to 2012, he served as Speaker of the Hellenic P ...
Willamette University College of Law
Willamette University College of Law is the law school of Willamette University. Located in Salem, Oregon, and founded in 1883, Willamette is the oldest law school in the Pacific Northwest. It has approximately 24 full-time law professors and ...
and President of the American Society of Comparative Law
*
Haris Kastanidis
Haris Kastanidis ( el, Χάρης Καστανίδης, born 11 March 1956 in Thessaloniki, Greece) is a Greek politician who served as Minister for Justice, Transparency and Human Rights and Minister for the Interior under George Papandreou. A ...
International Court of Justice
The International Court of Justice (ICJ; french: Cour internationale de justice, links=no; ), sometimes known as the World Court, is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN). It settles disputes between states in accordanc ...
, professor of
Public International Law
International law (also known as public international law and the law of nations) is the set of rules, norms, and standards generally recognized as binding between states. It establishes normative guidelines and a common conceptual framework for ...
Georgetown Law school
The Georgetown University Law Center (Georgetown Law) is the law school of Georgetown University, a private research university in Washington, D.C. It was established in 1870 and is the largest law school in the United States by enrollment and ...
Comparative Law
Comparative law is the study of differences and similarities between the law (legal systems) of different countries. More specifically, it involves the study of the different legal "systems" (or "families") in existence in the world, including the ...
at
Columbia Law School
Columbia Law School (Columbia Law or CLS) is the law school of Columbia University, a private Ivy League university in New York City. Columbia Law is widely regarded as one of the most prestigious law schools in the world and has always ranked i ...
*
Xenophon Zolotas
Xenophon Euthymiou Zolotas ( el, Ξενοφών Ζολώτας, 26 April 1904 – 10 June 2004) was a Greek economist and served as an interim non-party Prime Minister of Greece.
Life and career
Born in Athens on 26 April 1904. He graduated fro ...
European Court of Human Rights
The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR or ECtHR), also known as the Strasbourg Court, is an international court of the Council of Europe which interprets the European Convention on Human Rights. The court hears applications alleging that ...
European Court of Human Rights
The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR or ECtHR), also known as the Strasbourg Court, is an international court of the Council of Europe which interprets the European Convention on Human Rights. The court hears applications alleging that ...
Elias Petropoulos
Elias Petropoulos ( el, Ηλίας Πετρόπουλος; Athens June 26, 1928 - Paris September 3, 2003) was a Greek author, folklorist and urban historian. A self-described "urban anthropologist," he wrote on aspects of Greek life that were rar ...
, author
* Haris Tagaras, lawyer linguist at the Council of the European Communities (1980 to 1982); Administrator at the Court of Justice of the European Communities and at the Commission of the European Communities (1986 to 1990); external consultant for European matters at the Ministry of Justice and member of the Permanent Committee of the Lugano Convention (1991 to 2004); member of the national Postal and Telecommunications Commission (2000 to 2002; from 2005 judge at the Civil Service Tribunal Of The European Union
* Miltiadis Papaioannou, former Minister of Justice, Transparency and Human Rights
* Dimitris Tsatsos, legal scholar and former Member of the
European Parliament
The European Parliament (EP) is one of the legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it adopts ...
. He was professor of
Constitutional Law
Constitutional law is a body of law which defines the role, powers, and structure of different entities within a state, namely, the executive, the parliament or legislature, and the judiciary; as well as the basic rights of citizens and, in fe ...
*
Michalis Papakonstantinou
Michalis Papakonstantinou ( el, Μιχάλης Παπακωνσταντίνου; 1 November 1919 – 17 January 2010) was a Greek politician and author. He studied law at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. Papakonstantinou served as the Mi ...
, former Minister of Justice
* A. N. Yiannopoulos, is a former professor at
Tulane University Law School
Tulane University Law School is the law school of Tulane University. It is located on Tulane's Uptown campus in New Orleans, Louisiana. Established in 1847, it is the 12th oldest law school in the United States.
In addition to the usual common ...
, expert on civil law and comparative law, founder of the Civil Law Commentaries
*
Xavier Bettel
Xavier Bettel (; born 3 March 1973) is a Luxembourger lawyer and politician serving as Prime Minister of Luxembourg since 2013. He was previously a member of the Chamber of Deputies (1999–2013) and Mayor of Luxembourg City (2011–2013).
Be ...
, Prime Minister of Luxembourg
File:Venizelos Evangelos min.jpg,
Evangelos Venizelos
Evangelos Venizelos (, ; born 1 January 1957) is a Greek academic and politician who was Deputy Prime Minister of Greece and Minister for Foreign Affairs from 25 June 2013 to 27 January 2015. Previously, he was Deputy Prime Minister and Ministe ...
, former
Deputy Prime Minister
A deputy prime minister or vice prime minister is, in some countries, a government minister who can take the position of acting prime minister when the prime minister is temporarily absent. The position is often likened to that of a vice president ...
and
Finance Minister
A finance minister is an executive or cabinet position in charge of one or more of government finances, economic policy and financial regulation.
A finance minister's portfolio has a large variety of names around the world, such as "treasury", ...
, member of the
Greek Parliament
The Hellenic Parliament ( el, Ελληνικό Κοινοβούλιο, Elliniko Kinovoulio; formally titled el, Βουλή των Ελλήνων, Voulí ton Ellínon, Boule of the Hellenes, label=none), also known as the Parliament of the He ...
.
See also
*
List of universities in Greece
Universities in Greece form one part of constitutionally-recognized institutions with degree awarding powers. According to Greece's Constitution, higher education institutions (HEIs) include universities, polytechnics, some specialist HEIs, a ...
*
List of modern universities in Europe (1801–1945)
The list of modern universities in Europe (1801–1940) contains all universities that were founded in Europe after the French Revolution and before the end of World War II. Universities are regarded as comprising all institutions of higher ed ...
Sources
«Σχολή Νομικών, Οικονομικών και Πολιτικών Επιστημών: 75 χρόνια», Αριστοτέλειο Πανεπιστήμιο Θεσσαλονίκης, εκδ. Α.Π.Θ. (Faculty of Law, Economics and Political Science: 75 years, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, A.U.Th. publications)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Law School Of Thessaloniki
Law schools in Greece*1930 establishments in Greece