CLS Team

Team members

Ciarán Burke (Academic Director of the 2022 Edition)

Ciarán Burke is an academic, a lawyer, a Eurocrat, and a long-time supporter of the CLS Summer School. Ciarán is Professor and Senior Research Fellow at the Jena Center for Reconciliation Studies at the Friedrich Schiller University, Jena, Germany. He also works at the Internal Market Affairs Directorate of the EFTA Surveillance Authority in Brussels. He is the former Director of Research at the Law Reform Commission of Ireland, and has worked for a variety of governments, international organisations and NGOs.

Ciarán fell in love with the Czech mountains the first time he visited the CLS Summer School – as a student – in 2013. Since then, he has been back almost every year, either as a participant or a lecturer. While his recent elevation to academic director surprised him a bit, what surprised him even more was the cancellation of the 2021 School (which he was also supposed to lead) due to Covid-19. He is now on a mission to right that wrong, and to make the 2022 edition the best ever.

Kryštof Vrtek (Project Manager)

Kryštof (feel free to call him Chris) is in his sixth year of the Charles University Law School as he finishes his Diploma thesis. He joined the Summer School team in 2016 and he quickly worked his way through from the youngest member of the team to the project manager. Kryštof is also a former president of the Common Law Society.

Having long planned to become a teacher, he finally opted for a career in law. Now it's more than clear to Kryštof that his decision was right as he considers law as inseparable part of his life. During his study years, Kryštof strongly focused on gaining practical experience - since day one, he worked as a legal assistant for a bankruptcy & insolvency law firm and after that for the Czech Olympic Committee. Thanks to these experience, Kryštof found his passion for commercial and insolvency law. Currently, Kryštof works for one of the world's leading law firms as he is part of its M&A and Insolvency & Restructuring team. Kryštof was also lucky enough to have his teaching dream come true when he joined the Street Law project which allowed him to teach a law course in one of Prague’s private high schools. 

In his free time, he likes to practice sports, especially football and racquet sports. Last but not least, he is a true football fan - any fans of Tottenham Hotspur over here?

Natálie Jánská

Natálie is now in the last year of her studies at the Charles University Law School. She is now completing her last study duties and preparing for finals exams. Moreover, this autumn she is planning to go on Erasmus to Italy where she wants to focus on her diploma thesis.

Natalie is a former active member of Common Law society where she enjoyed the most helping Erasmus student. For three years she also participated in the Street Law project where she helped to bring law in an entertaining and interesting way to high schools. She has been part of the summer school team since 2018 and she enjoys the most meeting students and teachers from all around the world and talk about law in international context. She takes care of the Summer School marketing, social media and promotional activities in general. So if you found out about our summer school through social media or Google, it was probably thanks to her. The reason why she is perfect for this job is because social media marketing and e-commerc is Natalia’s great hobby. After her studies she would like to combine her law knowledge and marketing skills. And by the way, Natalie loves tennis, theater, playing the piano and teaching small kids how to play.

Jan Mais

Jan is in his fifth year of Charles University Law School. He is a former Common Law Society president and an active Law School member with a great interest in international law. So naturally, when Jan learnt that the following Summer School topic would address the EU in an international law context, he was truly delighted. Jan joined the Summer School team in 2019, and since then, he has reigned over the Participants segment.

Jan’s main academic focus lies outside of the Czech borders. For two years he acted as a student research assistant at the University’s Department of International law. He also represented the Law School in the Jessup 2021 international law moot court and participated in the Erasmus+ programme at Universiteit Leiden. Currently, he is working on his Diploma thesis and preparing for the final exams. Outside of the University, Jan is a valued intern of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Recently returning from a four-month internship in New York with the Permanent Mission of the Czech Republic to the United Nations, he is already on his way to join the Czech presidency in the Council of EU as an intern in the legal department. In his free time, he likes reading Lord of the Rings over and over, enjoys theatre and watches The Office religiously. And as someone from a winemaking family, he appreciates when a bottle of good wine is nearby!

Jolana Ordeltová

Jolana is a fourth-year student at Charles University Law School, where she also vigorously fights for its students in the ring of the academic senate. Joining the summer school team in 2021, Jolana, together with David, supervises the project's finance and communicates with the lectors.

If you are looking for the true EU law enthusiast in the team, she is your person. Besides acting as a student research assistant at the Department of European law, Jolana enjoyed participating in various moot court competitions (e.g. CEEMC '21). Moreover, she is currently preparing for her internship at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which will focus on the recent case law of the CJEU. Her specific interest lies in the protection of the rule of law in Europe. Recently she participated in the conference "Rule of Law and the Judiciary in the EU member states" organized by the Leipzig University at the beginning of the year.

Besides her academic interest, she is an avid reader, music listener and most definitely an art lover – all of which is combined in her favourite hobby, old school pen-paling.

David Šourek

 
David is in his third year of Charles University Law School. Intrigued by European law since his first encounter with it, when the option to help organize the summer school became available, he didn’t hesitate for a moment. Eager to put skills gained during his studies to the test in practice, he tried working at several law firms since starting law school. Joining the Common Law Society in his first year of law school, he quickly became an essential member of its organizing structure and finally was elected as a vice president of the society. When not studying or working, he likes to listen to and talk about music, enjoys reading a good book, and each summer he works as a camp counselor at a kids’ summer camp.
 

Kateřina Levá

Kateřina (better Kačka) is a third-year student at Charles University Law School. She started to be interested in the topic of the European Union and its issues at grammar school. Since that time, this interest has increased even more, especially by attending European Law courses at university. Beyond her EU law school duties, she took part in the Law Student Essay Competition (SVOČ) in the EU law section or she helps at the Department of EU Law at Charles University Law School. Therefore, to become a new member of the organizational team was a great opportunity to do something more connected with EU Law.

At the same time as studying law, Kačka works as a legal assistant in a law firm and occasionally as a waitress at a café. In her free time, she practices yoga and goes swimming, her new favourite type of sport is surfing. However, she is a sports fan in general (especially a football fan), so do not be afraid to involve her in whatever sports activity. Then her big hobby is travelling in which her other hobbies are combined as art, photographing or exploring new cultures and meeting new people -  Summer School will be a perfect place for this!

As someone who has worked in gastronomy for several years, she loves good food, selected coffee and beer (but it cannot be otherwise when you come from Pilsen - the beer town).

Alumni team members

Zuzana Vikarská (Founding Academic Director)

Zuzana Vikarska (Zuzi) is a true European: she was born and raised in (Czecho)Slovakia and has studied in Czechia, Belgium, and the United Kingdom, briefly also in Hungary and in the Netherlands. Studying law was a pragmatic choice; if it weren't for her parents, she would probably have pursued a career in journalism, languages, IT or music. Thanks to her Erasmus year in Leuven (and thanks to the incredible charisma of Koen Lenaerts) she fell in love with EU law and decided to stay and learn more about it. When she'd had enough of beer, chocolate and waffles, she moved across the channel to do a post-grad at Oxford, and slightly changed her focus to human rights (and medical law in particular). The city of dreaming spires absolutely won her heart, so she stayed there to pursue a research degree under the supervision of Steve Weatherill. Last spring she moved to Brussels to work for her home country during the Slovak Presidency in the Council of the EU. After SK PRES she moved to Brno (CZ) and she is currently a lecturer in constitutional law and human rights at the Masaryk University in Brno and she also works as a law clerk to the most amazing constitutional judge. When she's not working or writing her dissertation, she loves to organise (anything), chill (anywhere) and chat (with anyone).

Jan Komárek (Founding Academic Director)

Jan is Professor of EU law at the Univesity of Copenhagen. He has been the summer school’s academic director since 2012 (with a break in 2017) and has also done quite a bit of teaching in the moutains – and elsewhere (Oxford, LSE or Science Po).  

No matter how much Jan would want to be a true scholar, he is first of all the father of two amazing kids. This keeps him away from pursuing many brilliant ideas he has got but rarely gets written down and published (what true scholars do). Nevertheless, he managed to publish articles on EU law, courts and adjudication that people read and write about (a debate on his article will be published soon by International Journal of Constitutional Law, he published articles in American Journal of Comparative Law, Common Market Law Review and is on the Editorial Board of European Constitutional Law Review), which makes him very happy. At present he lead the ERC Starting Grant project on European Constitutional Imaginaries: Utopias, Ideologies and the Other.  

Jan studied in Prague, Stockholm and Oxford and before going to academia, he worked for the Czech Foreign Ministry and for the Constitutional Court as the President’s legal clerk. After seven years at the LSE he moved to Copenhagen in 2017 to take up the Chair in EU law at the Faculty of Law and i.Courts and is excited about coming back to what he considers his favourite part of Europe (besides his home country) – Scandinavia. 

Jan loves the mountains, mountain running and rock-climbing and in an alternative life he would like to work as a sherpa – not for his government in the European Council, but bearing loads in the mountains.

Jan Exner (Academic Director of the 2019 Edition)

Jan Exner (Jenda) is a true sportsperson. Even though he never has been and never will be a top athlete, he loves sports and this passion shines through both his personal and professional life. He studied at a sport-oriented grammar school and has been interested in law in sport since the very beginning of his studies at the Charles University Law School. 

Thanks to his EU law-oriented friends, the summer school and the character and nature of EU law, Jan has also gradually taken liking to EU law. That is also why he spent one (and the best) year of his life on Erasmus in Toulouse, France. When Jan graduated from law school in 2016, his dream became reality as he got the opportunity to work as a lawyer for the Czech Olympic Committee. Except for his Olympic journey, Jan works partially for the Fédération internationale de natation.

He is also a lecturer and a PhD student in EU law, human rights and sports (with a focus on anti-doping). Sport also fills the majority of Jan's free time. He has recently fell in love with cross fit and mixed martial arts.

Except for sport, Jan enjoys traveling (across the Czech lands as well as well as around the World), spending time with and talking to his friends over a good (Brazilian of Italian) coffee, red French or white Czech wine and Czech beer (preferably Pilsner) or reading books and watching movies (in Czech, English and French).

Matěj Slavík

Matej is a fifth-year student at the Charles University Law School. Currently, he stays in Lund where he studies EU law. He is the summer school's project manager for 2020 and he'll try hard to help you enjoy the summer school as much as he did when he first came as a participant in 2017.

Matěj worked at the Ministry of Finance of the Czech Republic and the Supreme Administrative Court of the Czech Republic. Recently, he concluded his internship at the Constitutional Court. He also participates in the Street Law project which helps educate people from excluded areas in Czechia and is trying to be an active member of the Czech Society for European and Comparative Law.

For a long time, Matěj longed for becoming an influential economist. In his eyes, it was the most effective way to improve living conditions for people in Central Africa as well as to protect the natural environment surrounding them, which is something he cares about deeply. That ended during his one year stay in New Zealand when he found out that in this scenario, the rest of his life would be inevitably attached to working with numbers, so he decided to help through other means. There was also a point, where Matěj thought about pursuing a career in the field of classical music as a professional violin player. That ambition has been gone for long, but his passion for classical music is here to stay. And the same goes for sports. Matěj played soccer for 6 years and was (kind of) a professional athlete in modern pentathlon (swimming, fencing, running, horse riding and shooting). Such experience made him a little bit competitive.

Recently, Matěj become passionate about constitutional and EU law. He also follows world news and loves to debate about them with a glass of a beer in his hand. He will also get married soon! Together with his fiancée, they will soon become co-authors of a book about Populism and Law.

Robin Fleček

Hi, I am Robin and I am a judicial law clerk at the Prague Administrative court. Despite my initial grudge towards this particular area of law I find it very entertaining and enlightening (no, really, I do!).

Having spent ludicrous amount of time around computers, technical support and web administration of this Summer School was the obvious choice for me. There are moments at which I am unable to be found at the chalet but it is mostly because I am behind of a wheel of a car and bringing your favourite lecturer form the Prague airport. Or I just went out to do a little bit of shopping for you.

Having the opportunity to come back to this Summer School every year is a real privilege for me. I would not trade these past 6 years for anything because spending 2 weeks each year in a beautiful environment with such amazing people beats everything. It is not something one walks away from easily. Next edition of Summer School can’t come quick enough but paitence is a virtue and I am very much looking forward to meeting new people and reuniting with our old friends.

Additionally, I recently became a huge fan of group fitness workouts, especially LesMills workouts and TRX workouts. I also wouldn’t say no to a game of volleyball or frisbee, which I hope I will be able to convince some of you to play with me in the mountains.

Jana Cimlerová

Jana is a fifth-year student of the Prague Faculty of Law and is currently enjoying her
Erasmus stay in Hamburg. She joined the Summer School’s team almost three years ago. She
is another project manager of the 2020 edition and is responsible for the School’s finances.

Since the beginning of her studies, she has been an active member of the Common Law
Society and an avid organizer of academic (and also not-so-academic) events for law
students as well as broad public. Besides EU law, they are mostly focused on her great
passion – medical law. Especially, she loves to get together students and experts of different
fields and to bring about interdisciplinary discussions about current issues. She also helps
run a legal advisory centre for both patients and medics. She has also always been into
meeting international students and has, for instance, organized a Buddy Program for the
incoming Erasmus students in Prague.

Apart from that, she is very keen on (art) history and linguistics. If you come to Prague, she’ll
be happy to take you for a tour around the city and share with you all the historical fun-facts
she happens to know.

In the free time left, she is a fan of most kinds of sports you can think of. Anyone for a game
of volleyball?

Jan Trnovský

Honza is one of the members of Summer School team, for whom this year is the first experience with organizing it. He’s studying the third year of the Charles University Law Faculty and since his second semester at the University, he’s been a member of the board of the Common Law Society, while his position now is the treasurer.

In Honza’s free time his biggest hobby is definitely sport. He never says no to an opportunity to play any kind of sport. He plays tennis and golf, but nowadays his biggest passion is quidditch!

Thanks to meeting Jenda at the Common Law Society Freshers’ Summer School, he’s been focusing on sports law since his first days at the University and so he may combine his hobby with studies. In the past two years, he has been the project manager of another summer school on sports law, organized for Czech students. Being a fan of the best Czech football club, AC Sparta Prague, he had the chance to be an intern at the law department of this club, but he has been an intern at the law department of the Czech Olympic Committee, too. As this year‘s topic of the Summer School is sports law, he had no choice but to become a part of our team and he’s looking forward to meeting you!