Presentation by Judge B. B. Donald given to Slovak judges
ODZ, 22. 9. 2022
On September 9, 2022, CDA held an online event for judges of Slovak courts of all levels with a key presentation given by Judge Bernice Bouie Donald of the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. The event was organised in cooperation with the U.S. Embassy in Bratislava.
Judge Donald is the first Afro-American working (since 2011) as one of the 16 judges at the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit which hears appeals from all of the circuit courts within its jurisdiction. It has jurisdiction over federal appeals arising from the states of Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and Tennessee and its rulings may be appealed to the Supreme Court of the United States.
Judge Donald is a remarkable figure of the US judiciary.* Besides her judicial work, she has contributed to opening up important issues concerning the functioning of legal professions as well as the design and the running of the justice system in more broader terms in the U.S. and abroad.
In her presentation, she focused on history of anti-discrimination law in the U.S. with emphasis on selected prohibited grounds of discrimination, in particular race, gender, age, religion, and colour. Judge Donald talked about how the interpretation of anti-discrimination legislation has been changing and presented wider societal impacts of those changes, too.
Judge´s Donald´s presentation was a departure point for a vivid discussion among the participants whose numbers exceeded 20. They asked about various aspects and details of U. S. anti-discrimination law as well as its implementation. At the same time, they also provided information on the application of anti-discrimination legislation in Slovakia. Both sides agreed that the event had been highly informative and mutually inspiring.
This event followed a series of educational events that CDA had been carrying out, in cooperation with various courts, for representatives of the Slovak judiciary on the application of the Anti-discrimination Act. The event was facilitated by Janka Debrecéniová and Šarlota Pufflerová from CDA.
