Well, classes have been underway for 3 days now and they are going great. So far we have been learning a lot about the history and structure of the European Union, as well as the way some of the intellectual property laws work over here. I was rather surprised at the extent to which the relationship between the E.U. and its member states is similar to the relationship between the U.S. federal government and our states.
Last night the University held a wine reception to welcome us to the school and the country. The President of the University, faculty, and local barristers were also there. In case you didn't realize, there are two types of lawyer in many civil law societies. When a person here has a problem he goes to a solicitor, who advises him and researches his problem. If the case eventually goes to trial, the solicitor then calls in the big guns: a barrister. The barrister is our equivalent of a trial lawyer and is sort of the rock star of the civil law scene. Another way they are like rock stars is that they wear wigs and dress all in black, just like the New York Dolls. Anyway, I didn't get to meet any barristers last night (they were wigless and thus hard to spot) but I'll get my opportunity when we visit the Cork District Court on Friday. I did get to meet a lot of the non-Pierce people in the program and a lot of the faculty. Afterwards, faculty and students went to a local wine bar, where some of the professors kindly footed the bill. Thanks professors!
