Professor Frederique Ferrand pictured with Professor Olivier Moreteau, Professor Nikolaos Davrados, Visiting Professor Ádám Fuglinszky, and students and guests who attended the lecture.
In his opening remarks for the 43rd John H. Tucker Jr. Lecture in Civil Law, Professor Olivier Moreteau recognized the lecture held on Tuesday, Feb. 6 as the first since 2019.
“After a break due to the pandemic, we are back and stronger than ever,” Moreteau said alluding to the addition of Professor Nikolaos Davrados to the Center for Civil Law Studies. “For this occasion, we needed an outstanding lecturer.”
Professor Frédérique Ferrand of the Université Jean Moulin, Lyon 3 in France took over from there to deliver the lecture in the McKernan Auditorium at LSU Law. The Tucker Lecture series is presented by the Center for Civil Law Studies, which is housed in the LSU Paul M. Hebert Law Center. A distinguished scholar is invited each year to give a lecture on civil law.
In Ferrand’s lecture, “Evolutions in European Family Law: Towards a Common Core,” she presented on the current trends in European family law, including recent cooperation on family matters within the European Union and the emerging trend of implementing national European family laws on matters like divorce while continuing different approaches to certain sensitive issues.
One issue that the European Union continues to take separate approaches on is surrogacy and the rules on the transfer of parenthood. Because each individual member state has its own rules on family law matters, the European Union has a limited role when it comes to such matters.
Ferrand, the director of the Institute for Comparative Law Édouard Lambert (IDCEL) and director of the research team for international, European law and comparative law (EDIEC), also noted in her lecture that national legislators are increasingly turning to comparative law studies to gain a comparative overview before regulating new challenges.
The Tucker Lecture series recognizes LSU Law Class of 1920 graduate Colonel John H. Tucker, Jr., one of Louisiana’s foremost legal scholars. The series is presented in appreciation of Tucker’s civil law scholarship and his dedication to law reform.
