Julia Laffranque

Julia Laffranque in 2012

Julia Laffranque (born 25 July 1974, née Vahing), is an Estonian jurist, judge, legal scientist (doctor iuris), professor of European law Since 3 November 2015 Vice-President of the Second Section of the European Court of Human Rights. Since 4 June 2018 also a member of the Scientific Committee of the European Union Fundamental Rights Agency. She has been a judge of the European Court of Human Rights since 2011, earlier a justice at the Supreme Court of Estonia and professor of European law at the University of Tartu.

Education

• 1991 - graduation with outstanding honors of the Litchfield High School, Connecticut, USA
• 1992 - graduation with a gold of the Tallinna Õismäe Humanitaargümnaasium
• 1997 – graduation of the Law Faculty of Tartu University (including studies at the Law Faculty of Hamburg University 1994–1995);
• 1998 – Master's degree in law (magistra legum, LL.M.) of the Law Faculty of Münster University, Germany, summa cum laude;
• doctoral studies at the University of Kiel and the European University Institute in Florence;
• 2003 – Doctoral degree in jurisprudence (doctor iuris, dr. iur.) University of Tartu.

Career

Julia Laffranque in TEDxTallinn 2012

• 1996 – 2004 – Ministry of Justice of Estonia: head of the EU law and foreign relations division, since 2002 Deputy Secretary General on Legislative Drafting;
• 2004 – 2010 – justice at the Supreme Court of Estonia (member of the administrative law chamber), 2007 – 2010 member of the constitutional review chamber of the Supreme Court;
• 2006 – 2011 docent of European Union Law at the Law Faculty of Tartu University, later professor of European law at the same faculty;
• Since 2011 judge at the European Court of Human Rights and Professor of European Law at the University of Tartu (since 2017 honorary professor)
• Dr. iur. Laffranque has completed traineeships at the Legal Service of the European Commission, at the Ministries of Justice in Sweden and France, the Supreme Administrative Court of Germany, and the Conseil d'Etat of France; she has also served as an ad hoc judge at the European Court of Human Rights;
• 2010 – 2016 - member of the Permanent Court of Arbitration
• 2006 – 2008 – vice-chair of the Consultative Council of European Judges (CCJE) of the Council of Europe;
• 2008 – 2010 – chair of the Consultative Council of European Judges;
• 2004 – 2013 – president of the European Law Society of Estonia (FIDE Estonia) since 2013 – honorary president of the same society;
• 2010 – 2012 – president of the International Federation for European Law (FIDE)
• 2004 – 2012 – member of the board of the Estonian Academic Law Society;
• 2000 – 2004 – member of the board of the policy think-tank "Praxis."
• since 2017 - member of the board of Estonian School in Strasbourg
• since 2017 - member of the committee of Tagora theatre in Strasbourg
• since 2018 - member of the scientific committee of European Union Fundamental Rights Agency, Vienna

Books

• Euroopa Liit ja Euroopa Ühendus. Institutsioonid ja õigus (European Union and European Community. Institutions and Law. Sisekaitseakadeemia 1999)
• Euroopa Kohtu Lahendid I ja II. Kogumiku koostaja ja Euroopa Kohut tutvustava osa author (Case law of the European Court of Justice (ECJ) in Estonian I and II. Compiler of the book and author of the introductory part about the ECJ. Juura 2001 and 2003)
• Prantsuse -eesti-prantsuse õigussõnaraamat (French-Estonian-French legal dictionary (together with Rodolphe Laffranque. Juura 2002)
• Eelotsuse küsimine Euroopa Kohtult (Handbook for Estonian judges about asking preliminary references from the ECJ. Eesti Õiguskeskus 2005)
• Euroopa Liidu õigussüsteem ja Eesti õiguse koht selles (The Legal System of European Union and Estonian Law. Juura 2006).
• Euroopa Inimõiguste Kohus ja Eesti õigus (European Court of Human Rights and Estonian law. Juura 2017)
• Dr. iur. Laffranque has published several articles in Estonian, English, German and French languages in Estonian and international legal journals

Honours

• 2004 – Chevalier de l'Ordre National du Mérite of France.
• 2005 – Order of the White Star, fourth class, Estonia.
• 2009 – Justice in the World prize for the CCJE (president Julia Laffranque)
• 2013 – European of the Year, European Movement of Estonia
• 2017 - Best trainer of judges award by Estonian judges

Personal life

Amateur actress of the Vilde theatre in Tartu, Estonia since 2006 and of the Tagora theatre at Council of Europe in Strasbourg since 2011. Director of children plays at the Estonian School in Strasbourg since 2013. Founder and initiator of the Theatre Club of the European Court of Human Rights, Strasbourg 2015.

Some of her roles: Elviine Vestberg in Oskar Luts "Vaikne nurgake" directed by Raivo Adlas,2007; Linda Vilde and Gertrud Edelstahl von Rostfrei in Veiko Märka "Tabamata ime" directed by Raivo Adlas, 2009; Mina in Maimu Berg "Euroopasse! Euroopasse!" directed by Raivo Adlas, 2010; Jelena Andrejevna in Anton Tshehhov "Onu Vanja" directed by Raivo Adlas, 2011; (J)Elena Popova in Brian Friel's (based on Anton Tshehhov) "The Bear", directed by Jodie Clifford, 2011; spy Liza in C. Chilto and J. Littlewood's, „Oh What a Lovely War“ directed by Louise Palmer, 2012; opera singer and adventuress Irene Adler in Richard Thayer's “Watson in Winter” directed by Richard Thayer and David Adamson, 2013; Aino Kallas in Maimu Berg's "Aino and Herman", directed by Julia Whitham and Louise Palmer in "Bell Epoque" (Tagora, Cube Noir Strasbourg), 2013; Sarah, Amanda, Queen Gertrud and wife of Sir. Thomas Moore in Christopher Durang's „Actors’Nightmare“, directed by David Adamson (Tagora, Au Camionneur, Strasbourg), 2015; Sarah in Ferenc Molnár's, „A Matter of Husbands“, directed by David Crow (Tagora, Au Camionneur, Strasbourg), 2015; Elizabeth Proctor in Arthur Miller's "The Crucible", directed by Louise Palmer (Tagora, rehearsed reading at the European Court of Human Rights), 2015; Honey in Edward Albee's "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf" directed by Martyn Symons (Tagora, Cube Noir, Strasbourg), 2016; William Shakespeare's Hamlet's monologue in Estonian with Tagora theatre and at the European Court of Human Rights, 2016; Lamchop, patient and black sheep, Jonathan Alexandratos "Duck" ("Part") directed by Mike Mecek, Peace Productions Americans in Alsace, 2016; E(dward) Steichen, in Brancusi vs. United States, historic trial reenacted, adapted by Andra Matei – , rehearsed reading, directed by Martyn Symons, 2016; Mrs. Vixen, Baltic scandalist, Richard Brinsley Sheridan, « The School for Scandal », directed by Louise Palmer, 2017; Digna Ochoa, Rana Husseini, Juliana Dogbadzi, Ka Hsaw Wa, Wangari Maathai, Kek Galabru, Marian Wright Edelman, Second Voice, Ariel Dorfman (based on the book by Kerry Kennedy), “Speak Truth to Power. Voices From Beyond the Dark” – directed by Andra Matei, 2017; Katharina Luther, Maimu Berg "Lutheri naine (Luther's wife)", directed by Julia Laffranque, 2017; Rutt, Maimu Berg "Grandfather" - directed by David Adamson, 2018.

She is married to French jurist Rodolphe Laffranque, has three sons: (twins) Oscar Helmut and Tobias Louis (born 2008) and Léo Lennart (born 2018); and is the daughter of writer Maimu Berg and of writer/psychiatrist Vaino Vahing.