From August 3 to 6, 2026, the Summer School for Law Lecturers entitled “Effective and Trauma-Informed Teaching on Responding to CRSV” was held in Lviv, organized by the Ukrainian Women Lawyers Association “JurFem” with the support of the Sigrid Rausing Trust.
Representatives of International, European and Comparative Law Department – Head of the Department Vladyslava Zavhorodnia and Associate Professor Anna Slavko – took part in the Summer School.
The event focused on comprehensive methodological and practical training for academic staff in teaching sensitive and complex topics related to conflict-related sexual violence.
The school’s program covered several key thematic areas:
- The Concept of Victim-Centered and Gender-Sensitive Justice: examining international and domestic frameworks for responding to CRSV crimes based on experience from strategic litigation.
- Psychological Aspects of Working with Trauma: analyzing factors of secondary victimization, overcoming stigmatization and professional stereotypes, and the role of legal professionals in fostering the post-traumatic growth of survivors.
- International Legal Qualification and Case Law: the interplay among international humanitarian law, international criminal law, and international human rights law in assessing CRSV, alongside an analysis of jurisprudence from international judicial bodies (particularly the ECtHR and the ICC).
- Procedural Specifics of Investigation and Adjudication: the specifics of evidence collection, upholding confidentiality standards, witness and victim protection, and practical aspects of the work of specialized prosecution units coordinating victim and witness support.
- Restorative Justice and Reparations: the implementation of urgent interim reparations in Ukraine and their integration into the human rights protection system.
Special emphasis was placed on working with the newly developed methodological “Guide to Teaching the Course ‘Conflict-Related Sexual Violence'”, prepared by leading experts and scholars. The acquired experience, methodological approaches, and materials will be integrated into the Department’s courses, particularly International Humanitarian Law, International Human Rights Law, and Transitional Justice.
