Ladies and Gentlemen,
Dear friends from the national Associations for European law,
Dean Prof. Koeck
Austria, because of its own history of integration, has always considered itself a link between the original Member States of the European Union and those countries which only after the political turn of events of 1989 and thereafter were able to create the conditions for accession to the Union. We therefore hope that FIDE XXIII Congress will not only contribute substantially to the advancement of European law but will also make use of Austria's bridging function.
At the same time, the national reports on the three topics of the Congress will demonstrate how Community law created by the six founding States half a century ago, has become the regulatory framework for an enlarged Union of 27 members. It is the virtue of FIDE that the visions and the experience of the national associations which took the initiative from the very first can be transferred in a continuous dialogue.
FIDE XXIII Congress Linz 2008, right in the centre of Europe and easily accessible, aspires to be, for as many interested people as possible, a forum of an animated exchange of ideas, which shall also be facilitated by the three working languages English, French, and German.