COURSE DESCRIPTION
The course delivers tailor-made courses on specific EU gender equality issues relevant to students in their academic and future professional lives. It is highly relevant that the Zagreb Faculty of Law offers a course that provides live and online lectures that offer comprehensive education on EU law and gender equality and provide in-depth analysis of EU gender equality norms. The course creates interest in EU gender equality and addresses the issue of its (in)adequate implementation at the national level. Law students and lawyers represent important facilitators for the successful implementation of the EU gender equality law and policy. There is a need to increase the number of lawyers dealing with gender discrimination issues in the legal profession and public administration, as well as prepare them for strategic litigation in front of national courts and an active role in the preliminary ruling procedure in front of the Court of Justice of the EU. The course offers interactive discussions, presentations and group work on the following topics:
Unit 1 – Introduction into EU equality law
(Development EU gender equality legislation; the pivotal role of Article 157 TFEU; central concepts of EU gender equality law; how can EU gender equality law be enforced, analysis of decisions of the Court of Justice of the EU in cases of gender discrimination)
Unit 2 – Development of the EU Equality Law
(feminist perspectives on globalization; women migration, gender and security in pandemic times)
Unit 3 – Gender equality: Definition of key concepts
(direct/indirect discrimination, harassment and sexual harassment, burden of proof, victimization, equal pay, violence against women, multiple and intersectional discrimination, remedies and sanctions)
Unit 4 – Gender-based violence
(Definition of gender-based violence and violence against women in international human rights and EU law and the status of victims of GBV and VAW in the EU law; domestic violence; sexual violence; physical violence, psychological violence; economic violence; litigation in front of national courts, the role of equality bodies and CSOs in providing legal advice to victims)
Unit 5 – EU sexual harassment law
(Definition of harassment; types of sexual harassment at workplace; how to fill a sexual harassment complaint; how to handle a sexual harassment claim; litigation in front of national courts, the role of equality bodies and CSOs in providing legal advice to victims)
Unit 6 – Multiple discrimination & immigration
(discrimination of migrant and refugee women; How to prevent or respond to sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) cases in the provision of information, ability to identify high-risk cases, and provision of referrals and services; intersection between gender and race/ethnicity)
Unit 7 – Gender policies and gender politics
(Comparative analysis of women in decision-making process; gender quotas in politics; analysis of potential impact of the proposed Directive on improving the gender balance among non-executive directors of companies listed on stock exchanges and related measures)
Unit 8 – Gender, privacy and data protection in the digital age
(Analysis of gender-based sexist/hate speech on internet and legal remedies; legal implications of changing names and gender)
Unit 9 – Gender in(equality) in the labour market
(Comparative gender aspects of access to the labour market, employment promotion, equal pay for equal work or work of equal value, gender pay gap; analysis of relevant cases in front of Court of Justice of the EU)
Unit 10 – Gender equality and artificial intelligence
(Assessment whether current EU law sufficiently captures gender-based biases and algorithmic discrimination in the context of artificial intelligence and provides a analysis of the EU legislative framework on AI, including Artificial Intelligence Act)
Unit 11 – Gender equality outside employment – access to goods and services
(Analysis of potential impact of the Directive 2004/113/EC implementing the principle of equal treatment between men and women in the access to and supply of goods; health services for women; insurance gender ruling; gender access to goods in lights of consumer protection)
EU Gender Equality Law
Professor: Snježana Vasiljević
Ćirilometodska 4, room 53
snjezana.vasiljevic@unizg.pravo.hr
www.pravo.hr/snjezana.vasiljevic
Course Description
The course delivers tailor-made courses on specific EU gender equality issues relevant to students in their academic and future professional lives. The course creates interest in EU gender equality and addresses the issue of its (in)adequate implementation at the national level. Law students and lawyers represent important facilitators for the successful implementation of the EU gender equality law and policy. There is a need to increase the number of lawyers dealing with gender discrimination issues in the legal profession and public administration, as well as prepare them for strategic litigation in front of national courts and an active role in the preliminary ruling procedure in front of the Court of Justice of the EU. The course offers interactive discussions, presentations and group work on the following topics:
- Introduction to EU gender equality law
- Development of EU gender equality law
- Gender equality: definition of key concepts
- Gender-based violence
- EU sexual harassment law
- Multiple discrimination & Immigration
- Gender policies and gender politics
- Gender, privacy and data protection in the digital age
- Gender in(equality) in the labour market
- Gender equality and artificial intelligence
- Gender equality outside employment
Prof. dr. sc. Snjezana Vasiljevic, M. Phil (Cantab), Ph.D (Zagreb), is a professor of the European Union Law, Fundamental Rights in the EU and EU Gender Equality Law at the Faculty of Law – University of Zagreb, ad hoc judge at the European Court of Human Rights and the president of the Faculty’s Committee for Gender Equality and Non-discrimination and Committee for Combating Sexual Harassment. As a British Government Chevening Scholar, she earned her master’s at the Faculty of Law, University of Cambridge, Darwin College. She is the expert of the EU Fundamental Rights Agency, Council of Europe, the Committee for Justice of the Croatian Parliament, and the special advisor of the Vice president of the Croatian government for human rights and gender equality.
Basic information
4 ECTS
30 hours of teaching
Guest lectures from:
Academia
Court of Justice of the EU
European Court of Human Rights
International Non-governmental Organisations
Course requirements
- take-home open-book exam (essay on a given topic or solving of a hypothetical case) – 60% of the grade
- participation in “online” and “in class” discussions; individual or group presentation – 30%
- regular attendance – 10% of the grade
Course materials
- available on eLearning platform Merlin (log in using AAI identity
Join us @
Web-site: https://www.pravo.unizg.hr/ejp/eu_gender_equality_law
eLearning site:
https://moodle.srce.hr/2023-2024/
LITERATURE
Vasiljević, S. “Intersectional Discrimination: Difficulties in Interpretation of European Norm”, in M. Thiel & E. Prugl (eds.), Diversity and European Integration, New York: Macmillan/Palgrave (2009) Vasiljević, S. Equality, non-discrimination & fundamental rights: old habits die hard! EU Labour, Equality and Human Rights Law, Conference Proceedings, University J. J. Strossmayer, Osijek, Faculty of Law (2015) Örtenblad, A. Marling, R. and Vasiljevic, S. (Eds.), Gender Equality in a Global Perspective , Routledge: New York (2017) Vasiljević, S., Sunko A. “EU Law and Gender-Balanced Boards: Making Equality Effective”, Croatian Yearbook of European Law, Vol. 13., pp. 27-51 (2017) Sander, G. Gerald ; Poščić, Ana ; Martinović, Adrijana (eds.), “ The Current State of Play on Equal Pay Discrimination in Croatia”, Exploring the Social Dimension of Europe, Essays in Honour of Nada Bodiroga-Vukobrat / Hamburg: Verlag Dr. Kovac (2021) Relevant case law (CJEU, ECtHR, national courts) Available book chapters and academic articles
STUDENT RESPONSIBILITIES
Regular attendance, active participation and the exam in the form of an essay. Students will be required to attend classes and prepare for each class by reading the assigned materials to be discussed in class (cases/academic materials). The professor will monitor and evaluate the students’ class activity. The students will also have to pass a written, open book exam, which will cover issues discussed during the term. The final grade will be the awarded based on the final exam (80%), also taking into account class participation in discussions and oral presentation (20%).