The Faculty of Law is the oldest faculty of the University of Pécs, which honours and cherishes the traditions of legal training in Pécs and of the university founded in 1367. Its legal predecessor, the Hungarian Royal Erzsébet University, was established in Pozsony (Bratislava) by Act XXXVI of 1912, and it was later (temporarily) moved to Pécs by Act XXV of 1921. The Faculty of Law launched its first semester in Pécs in the autumn of 1923. One part of the professors of the Faculty came from the ranks of former teachers of the episcopal lycée of law, which had operated until 1923. The Faculty of Law of Pécs is the only faculty of the Hungarian Royal Erzsébet University that has been functioning continuously since 1923. It has brought up excellent scholars and teachers for the legal profession: including Nándor Óriás, Albert lrk, and Ferenc Faluhelyi. Students trained within the walls of the Faculty include, for example, our former Presidents of the Republic László Sólyom and Ferenc Mádl as well as President of the Curia Péter Darák, and among today’s lecturers one may find such distinguished personalities as recent judges of the Constitutional Court, members of the government and heads of national institutions.
The teaching, research and administrative infrastructures of the Faculty may – still - be classified as outstandingly good.
The Faculty provides high standard training for more than 2000 students. Students can pursue their studies in buildings that have been renovated with great care, preserving architectural authenticity and the patina of by-gone eras and, at the same time; preparing for the technical challenges of the future. There are air-conditioned lecture halls designed by interior designers, a library of high academic standard, a computer park as well as free internet access for students.
At present the organizational units of the Faculty are located in three buildings. The European Centre for Research and Education, the European Documentation Centre and the Faculty Library are housed in the Centre for Learning, which was opened in 2010
Education is based on the credit system – which ensures more flexibility regarding academic progress - and it is carried out in accordance with a continuously revised curriculum and subject structure adjusted to the requirements of the era. Although education follows a standard curriculum, it nonetheless provides sufficient freedom for students to choose from a range of elective subjects offered in Hungarian or a foreign language.
The academic staff of the Faculty comprises nearly 60 highly-qualified professors and associate professors with many decades’ experience as well as ambitious and talented senior and assistant lecturers, who consider the application of modern instruments of instruction and methodology also indispensable. The organization of academic procedures (enrolment in the university, registration for the given semester, signing up for course units and exam registrations etc.) has been computerised. There is an Accredited Professional Language Examination Centre operating at the Faculty. For those interested in scientific research, the Scientific Students’ Association provides the opportunity to write scientific works at a later stage, and there is a College for Advanced Studies, which is a professional-intellectual community that equips law students with additional knowledge supplementing university training and also develops students’ rhetorical and practical skills.
The Regional Library and Centre for Learning was opened 200 meters away from the building of the University in September 2010. It constitutes the first hybrid library in Hungary, serving both public education and university purposes. It is a home to the (central) University Library and the Benedek Ferenc Law and Economics Library. The Benedek Ferenc Specialist Library is open to university citizens every day from 8.00 a.m. to 8.00 p.m., offering academic literature and textbooks, Hungarian and foreign academic journals and online databases covering a wide range of scientific areas. Besides traditional library services, it is also possible to receive technical assistance online. More than 1.2 million documents are available to readers in the Centre for Learning and WiFi can be accessed in the whole area of the library. Copying, printing and scanning are available at service points or through automatic copy machines that have been installed in the library for readers.
At the Faculty, there is compulsory (free of charge) legal language training in Latin and a second foreign language (German, English, French or Russian as an additional option if required). Legal language classes form part of the Faculty curriculum. On the other hand, there are also courses offered as optional classes, which prepare students for the legal language exam that may be taken at the Faculty. There is a Legal and Administrative Language Examination Centre (PROFEX) operating at the Faculty, which provides an accredited, state-recognized professional language exam certificate.
Students’ stay at the university is rendered more convenient and enjoyable by pleasant student areas, a canteen, buffet, café and vending machines located in the corridors. Besides the protection of students’ interests, the well-functioning and active student self-government is responsible for the organization of numerous professional events (Lawyers’ Day), sports and cultural programmes, the freshers’ ball and camp. The Faculty also boasts the Óriás Nándor College for Advanced Studies, the Young Intellectuals’ Club (FÉK), and the Faculty Journal entitled Expressis Verbis edited by students. Through the ELSA-Pécs organization, the students of the Faculty are also members of the European Association of Law Faculties, within the framework of which they participate in the organization of the international summer university programmes of the Faculty.
