Nebojša Vučinić ( sr-cyrl, Небојша Вучинић; born 17 October 1953) is a Montenegrin judge born in

Cetinje Cetinje ( cnr-Cyrl, Цетиње, ) is a List of cities and towns in Montenegro, town in Montenegro. It is the former royal capital ( cnr-Latn-Cyrl, prijestonica, приjестоница, separator=" / ") of Montenegro and is the location of sev ...

, Montenegro, and was the judge of the

European Court of Human Rights The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR), also known as the Strasbourg Court, is an international court of the Council of Europe which interprets the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). The court hears applications alleging that a co ...

in respect of Montenegro until July 2018.

Education

He graduated from the High Grammar School of

Titograd Podgorica ( cnr-Cyrl, Подгорица; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Montenegro, largest city of Montenegro. The city is just north of Lake Skadar and close to coastal destinations on the Adriatic Sea. Histor ...

(today

Podgorica Podgorica ( cnr-Cyrl, Подгорица; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Montenegro, largest city of Montenegro. The city is just north of Lake Skadar and close to coastal destinations on the Adriatic Sea. Histor ...

) in 1972. In 1976, he obtained a Bachelor of Arts at the Faculty of Law of Titograd. In 1980, he completed a master's degree in international law at the

University of Belgrade The University of Belgrade () is a public university, public research university in Belgrade, Serbia. It is the oldest and largest modern university in Serbia. Founded in 1808 as the Belgrade Higher School in revolutionary Serbia, by 1838 it me ...

and in the same university obtained a Ph.D. in international public law and international relations.

Career

From 1976 to 2008, he worked at the Podgorica Law Faculty, first as research assistant, then as assistant professor and full-time professor. During his military service in 1980–1981, he was Defense Lawyer at First Instance Military Court in Belgrade. During the 1990s, he was part of several experts group in charge of negotiations following the dissolution of Yugoslavia and the creation of a new union between

Montenegro , image_flag = Flag of Montenegro.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Montenegro.svg , coa_size = 80 , national_motto = , national_anthem = () , image_map = Europe-Mont ...

and

Serbia , image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg , national_motto = , image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg , national_anthem = () , image_map = , map_caption = Location of Serbia (gree ...

, until Montenegrin independence. From 2000 to 2008, he was the director of the University of Montenegro / Law Faculty Human Rights Center. Since 1994, he was also head of the Department in International law and International Relations. From 2004 to 2006, he was the representative of Serbia and Montenegro in Sterring Committee for Human Rights at the

Council of Europe The Council of Europe (CoE; , CdE) is an international organisation with the goal of upholding human rights, democracy and the Law in Europe, rule of law in Europe. Founded in 1949, it is Europe's oldest intergovernmental organisation, represe ...

. From 2003 to 2007, he was member of the Judicial Council of Montenegro, in charge of proposing judge candidates for the courts of Montenegro to the Parliament. He was Judge of the

from 15 April 2008 to 11 July 2018. In his curriculum vitae presented to the

Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) is the parliamentary arm of the Council of Europe, a 46-nation international organisation dedicated to upholding human rights, democracy and the rule of law. The Assembly is made up of ...

, he indicates his membership in several NGOs and associations. This includes CEDEM (Center for Democracy and Human Rights) of which he was a member of the Steering Committee, "Group for Change" of which he was also a member of the steering committee (the NGO "Group for Change" later reorganized in a political party

Movement for Changes Movement for Changes (, PZP) is a right-wing populist and far-right political party in Montenegro. Its current leader is Nebojša Medojević, the party's founder. History The party was founded by a group of economists and academics in Septembe ...

and turned to conservatism and euro-skepticism despite being mostly centrist in the beginning). After his mandate as judge at the

, he returned as professor at the Faculty of Law to the University of Montenegro. He also became a member of the NGO Civic Alliance (Grandaska Alisanja), as part of their executive council. He was cited in a recent NGO report for possible conflict of interest as he was at the

. Indeed, several NGOs he is or was a member of received fund from the

Open Society Foundations Open Society Foundations (OSF), formerly the Open Society Institute, is an American grantmaking network founded by business magnate George Soros. Open Society Foundations financially supports civil society groups around the world, with the s ...

, while he seated in cases where the Open Society Justice Initiative or other groups associated with the

were involved.

References

1953 births Living people Judges of the European Court of Human Rights Montenegrin judges of international courts and tribunals Montenegrin judges {{Montenegro-bio-stub