În A.U.B.D. – Forum Juridic nr. 1/2026 a fost publicat discursul susținut de dr. Octavia Spineanu-Matei, Președinta Camerei a VIII-a a Curții de Justiție a Uniunii Europene, intitulat „A plea for studying (and loving) the EU Law”, cu ocazia evenimentelor dedicate conferirii titlului de Doctor Honoris Causa domnului profesor dr. Koen Lenaerts, președintele Curții de Justiție a Uniunii Europene, desfășurate în cadrul Facultății de Drept a Universității din București la data de 27 martie 2026.

The speech highlights, by referring to several cases pending before the Court of Justice of the European Union, the scope and diversity of situations in which Union law applies and calls for constant dialogue between national courts and the European court. Examples drawn from the fields of copyright law, family law, judicial cooperation in criminal matters, and competition law illustrate the cross-cutting nature of European Union law and its presence in a wide variety of legal fields. The central idea of the discourse is that European Union law should not be viewed as a secondary discipline in relation to the so-called “fundamental” legal disciplines, but rather as a structural component of contemporary legal education and practice. From this perspective, the author issues a call directed particularly at law students, emphasizing that, regardless of the legal profession they choose, a rigorous understanding of European Union law will, sooner or later, become indispensable.

Cuvinte cheie: dreptul Uniunii Europene; Curtea de Justiție a Uniunii Europene; dialog judiciar, trimitere preliminară, educație juridică.