The ELI's Home in Vienna

Dr Vanessa Wilcox, LLM (Cantab) is the Secretary-General of ELI. Dr Wilcox holds a Master’s Degree in Commercial Law (LLM) from the University of Cambridge (2006) and a Doctoral Degree from the University of Vienna (2014), for which she won the Dr Maria Schaumayer-Stiftung Prize (2015) and the Association of Austrian Bankers Prize (2016). Among other things, Dr Wilcox is a Fellow of the European Centre of Tort and Insurance Law (ECTIL, since 2009) and is an Honorary Professor of Yantai University Law School (China, since 2015). She lectures at the University of Vienna and has held lectures at other universities in Austria and abroad. Her role as Secretary-General includes enhancing ELI's network, establishing contacts with other institutions and raising awareness of ELI and its work. She is also in charge of the coordination of the Secretariat's work and and maintains close contact with ELI Bodies. Dr Wilcox can be reached here.

Tomasz Dudek is a Senior Project Officer at the ELI Secretariat. He holds a Master of Laws degree and an MA in International Relations from the University of Warsaw. He has worked for the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA), the Polish Ombudsperson Office and several human rights NGOs, including the Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights. Dudek is responsible for the management of the following on-going and recently completed ELI projects: Principles for a Data Economy: Data Transactions and Data Rights (with the ALI), Freedom of Expression as a Common Constitutional Tradition in Europe, Blockchain Technology and Smart Contracts, The Concept and Role of Courts in Family and Succession Matters, Fundamental Constitutional Principles, ELI-Mount Scopus European Standards of Judicial Independence, Climate Justice – New Challenges for Law and Judges, and Ecocide. He is also responsible for the prospective project on Digitalisation of Justice Systems as well as some of ELI’s responses to public consultations. Dudek is also responsible for the ELI’s EU Operating Grant. Dudek can be contacted here.

Katja Kolman is a Senior Project Officer at the ELI Secretariat. She holds a Master of Laws from the University of Ljubljana. She has previously worked at FRA, where she was involved in a handful of research projects. She gained additional work experience at the Permanent Representation of the Republic of Slovenia to the Council of Europe in Strasbourg and the Legal-Informational Centre for NGOs in Ljubljana. Kolman is responsible for the management of the following on-going and recently completed ELI projects: Access to Digital Assets, Admissibility of E-Evidence in Criminal Proceedings in the EU, Advance Choices for Future Disablement, Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Public Administration – Developing Impact Assessments and Public Participation for Digital Democracy, Business and Human Rights: Access to Justice and Effective Remedies, Guidance on Company Capital and Financial Accounting for Corporate Sustainability, and Guiding Principles and Model Rules on Algorithmic Contracts. She is also responsible for the prospective project on the Recognition of Agreements Resulting from Mediation as well as some of ELI’s Innovation Papers and responses to public consultations. Kolman can be contacted here.

Laura Papasodaro is a Project Officer at the ELI Secretariat. She holds a Master of Laws from the University of Milan and the University Toulouse I Capitole, following a double degree programme. She has previously worked at FRA, in the data protection office. She gained additional work experience at the International Institute for the Unification of Private Law (UNIDROIT) and in a private law firm. Papasodaro is responsible for the management of the following on-going projects: Third Party Funding of Litigation, Guiding Principles on Implementing Workers’ Right to Disconnect, Update of ELI’s Detention of Asylum Seekers and Irregular Migrants and the Rule of Law: Checklists and European Standards. She is also responsible for the following upcoming and prospective projects: EU Conflict of Laws for Companies: The Acquis and Beyond, Digital Inheritance, Nudges as Enablers of Sustainable Living. Papasodaro can be contacted here.

Zuzana Fačková is a Senior Finance and Membership Officer at the ELI Secretariat. She holds a Master’s Degree in European Studies from the Comenius University in Bratislava and is currently writing her Master thesis in Political Sciences at the University of Vienna. She previously worked at the FRA and has experience in event management and administration. In the past, she worked in the parliamentary bureau for an MP of the German Bundestag within the framework of the International Parliamentary Scholarship programme. She is responsible for finances, membership, administrative tasks and event management at ELI. Fačková can be contacted here.

Lucija Duzel is a PR Officer at the ELI Secretariat. She holds a Master of Arts degree in Communication from the University of Westminster in the United Kingdom as well as a Bachelor of Arts (Hons) degree in Journalism from the same university. She has previously worked at FRA, where she was involved in creating human rights narratives and building strong support for fundamental rights in today’s societies of the EU. Duzel has also gained additional work experience at the Croatian Radiotelevision and Exberliner. She is responsible for the further development of the ELI’s PR strategy, ELI’s Newsletter, and website, as well as the coordination of Hubs and SIGs. Duzel can be reached here.

Viktoriia Ivanova is a Finance and Event Officer at the ELI Secretariat. She holds a Bachelor’s Degree in International Relations with a focus in international forums and events from the North-West Institute of Management (RANEPA) in Russia. She holds a Postgraduate Diploma as a translator in the Field of Professional Communication from the same Institute. In 2018, she successfully completed the Erasmus+ exchange programme at the International and European Studies faculty of the National University of Public Service in Hungary. She is currently writing her Master’s thesis in East Asian Studies at the University of Vienna. In addition, she also gained further knowledge in International Business Administration, recently completing courses in the mentioned field. She was previously employed as an Event Manager at the Russian exhibition centre, ExpoForum International. Due to her big interest in events organising she further extended her work experience as an Event Advisor in the CIIC Group in China, where she assisted in the preparation of one of their largest events in 2019, the International Symposium on the Peaceful Uses of Space Technology (Health). Viktoriia can be contacted here.

Matthias Klonner is an Austrian lawyer who works at the Department of Civil Law at the University of Vienna. He supports the Secretariat on IT issues. Klonner can be reached here.