Today’s conference - organised by the AIRE Centre and the Ministry of Justice of Montenegro and facilitated by the British Embassy in Montenegro - marked the end of the first stage in the process of the codification of Montenegro’s civil law.

The conference brought together Deputy Prime Minister Mr Pazin and members from his team, Ambassador Whitting, domestic judges, and local, regional and international eminent professors and experts.

Codification of civil law, a process Montenegro has now embarked on, is a major undertaking motivated by the desire to adopt a comprehensive set of rules that will serve the country over a long period of time. Codification guarantees transparency, legal certainty and protects from arbitrary decision-making. These are all necessary in order to attract foreign investment and promote the rule of law.  

Experts spoke of these benefits of codification, challenges facing the progression of the project and the need to use comparative experience in order to benefit from best practices. Also presented was an overview of the examination that had been undertaken into Montenegrin law as it currently stands.  

The AIRE centre is honoured to have been asked to assist the Ministry of Justice in implementation of this important project. To succeed in codification, Montenegro will, like many other jurisdictions, now require the support of international legal experts. We at the AIRE will work to secure best UK, European and regional legal expertise for this project.