Review of Law and Social Studies
Volume 3, Issue 1, April 2026
Table of Contents
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- Lecturer Bogdan Cristian TRANDAFIRESCU
The Exceptional Exclusion of the Applicable Law in International Trade Contracts. A Comparative Law Study▼Abstract▼This study examines, from a comparative perspective, the situations in which the law applicable to international trade contracts may be exceptionally excluded through public policy, overriding mandatory rules, and fraud of the law. The analysis begins from the premise that modern conflict-of-laws rules are the result of a long doctrinal and jurisprudential evolution shaped by the constant interaction between national legislation, international instruments, and the practical needs of cross-border commerce. The comparative method employed relies exclusively on exact normative texts: the Rome I Regulation, the Rome Convention (1980), the CIDIP Convention, as well as the main national codifications in Europe, Asia, and North America. The research findings reveal the existence of a functional convergence among major legal systems: the standard of manifest incompatibility, the autonomous definition of overriding mandatory provisions, and the sanctioning of artificial legal behavior constitute shared reference points. Although the substantive content of these mechanisms remains national, their legal structure has become largely uniform. The main implication is that contemporary private international law of contracts provides a predictable and coherent framework capable of balancing party autonomy with the protection of essential state interests.
Keywords: lex contractus; conflict of laws; public policy; overriding mandatory provisions; fraud of the law.
JEL Classification: K12, K22, K33
- PhD. student Christine Giulia ABAZA
Practical Considerations Regarding the Publishing of Musical Works and the Impact on the Publisher’s Goodwill▼Abstract▼The reconfiguration of the music industry, driven by the evolution of how musical works are used, including the transition from physical unit distribution to digital exploitation, generates a corresponding evolution of the publisher’s definition and its core role in the exploitation of these intellectual creations. The strategic positioning of these entities – between the author of the work and the multitude of commercial partners (record labels, digital platforms, broadcasting or television organizations) – is made possible by a complex legal instrument known as the „publishing contract”. This mechanism is situated at a normative intersection of interest from at least three branches of private law: Civil Law, Intellectual Property Law and Commercial Law. Through this study, we propose an analysis of the legal framework of the music publishing contract and the added value that these works bring to the publisher’s goodwill, including an analysis of the specific practices within the Romanian music industry – a market in continuous evolution that aspires to the Western model. To achieve this objective, the research is grounded in a concise practical approach, utilizing research methods such as the comparative law method, to document international trends in approaching the legislative framework of the field; the logico-deductive method, as a reasoning instrument; the hermeneutic method of research and the sociological method, to evaluate the social impact of the analyzed regulations.
Keywords: civil law, publishing contract, intellectual creations, musical works.
JEL Classification: K12, K15
- Associate professor Luiza Cristina GAVRILESCU
The Main Regulatory Standards Imposed by the Union Legislative Framework on Consumer Credit Contracts▼Abstract▼Achieving a high level of consumer protection in credit agreements has required the establishment of a harmonized European legal framework, aimed at aligning Member States' legislation with a minimum standard of effectiveness. Directive (EU) 2023/2225 on consumer credit agreements represents a unified and coherent legislative benchmark, enabling a more flexible transposition into national legal systems. The requirements set forth by the Union legislative instrument aim at the adoption, within Member States' legal frameworks, of measures designed to ensure that credit agreements are concluded under conditions of transparency and security. These measures involve monitoring the advertising of credit products, ensuring that applicants receive adequate information and counselling to enable informed decision-making regarding the associated costs, as well as conducting a thorough assessment of repayment capacity to prevent consumer over-indebtedness. It is worth noting the diversification of the legally recognized means of terminating credit agreements, including the right of withdrawal, the right of termination, and the right to early repayment. In this context, the deadline granted to Member States for adopting transposition measures for the new Directive is November 2025, with their application scheduled to commence one year later, starting on 20 November 2026.
Keywords: directors' liabilities, avoidance actions, asset tracing, pre-pack proceedings, enhancing transparency.
JEL Classification: K22, K35
- PhD. student Adina GHIDURA (NICĂ)
Management of the Health Crisis Caused by COVID-19 in Turkey▼Abstract▼In order to manage the health crisis caused by COVID-19 quickly and effectively, states resorted to the available legal mechanisms, taking into account implications for human rights. In Turkey, a member of the Council of Europe since 1950 and a candidate for the European Union since 1999, the Constitution allows for the declaration of a state of emergency in the event of an epidemic. However, authorities did not declare such an exceptional state, even though measures were taken to manage the crisis that restricted the exercise of certain human rights. This study forms part of a broader research concerning legal order during the exceptional states and it aims to present how the state of emergency is regulated in Turkey, to describe the way the pandemic was addressed, particularly from the perspective of human rights, and to assess the implications and limits of restricting the exercise of these rights. To achieve these objectives, historical, analytical, and comparative research methods were used. The results of the study highlight that Turkey chose to manage the crisis by implementing measures specific to a state of emergency, without formally declaring one, even though a state of emergency is not an uncommon phenomenon for this country.
Keywords: health crisis, COVID-19, emergency measures in Turkey, human rights.
JEL Classification: K10, K33, K38
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PhD. candidate Gabriela TEODORU
Sale with a Right of Redemption – A Pignorative Operation at the Intersection of Formal Rigor and Anti-Usury Control▼Abstract▼This article conducts an in-depth analysis of the legal framework governing the sale with a right of redemption (S.R.R.), exploring the dual nature of the contract and demonstrating that, although formally it is a sale subject to a resolutory condition, its economic substance qualifies it as a disguised pignorative operation intended to guarantee a loan (an efficient pactum commissorium). The S.R.R. manifests itself as a rapid financing instrument (a type of bridge financing), with relevant applicability in various economic fields, from urgent real estate transactions and trade in valuable movable goods (luxury items, equipment) to the financing of capital operations (through the sale and repurchase of shares/participating interests). However, this economic utility is constantly overshadowed by the major risk of usury and the circumvention of forced execution rules. A critical evaluation of the boundary between sale and loan is carried out, highlighting how the disproportion in price and the intent to secure a debt expose the contract to the sanction of absolute nullity due to illicit cause (usury/loan sharking), despite its formal validity. The article includes a detailed comparative analysis with foreign legal systems (Italian, English, German), emphasizing the more stringent solutions for economic control (price ceiling) and judicial requalification (equity mortgage). Finally, de lege ferenda proposals are formulated, aimed at strengthening the institution by introducing material control of the price and increased transparency of publicity (registration in the AEGRM – the Romanian Electronic Archive of Security Notices), thereby transforming the S.R.R. into a more ethical and resilient financing instrument against judicial challenges.
Keywords: sale, varieties of sale, sale with right of redemption (or sale with option to repurchase), resolutory condition, credit instrument, pactum commissorium (or forfeiture clause), usury (or loan sharking), Civil Code.
JEL Classification: K11, K12, K15
- Professor Filofteia REPEZ
The Role of the Council of Europe in Human Security▼Abstract▼:The concept of human security shifts the focus from state-centred military defence to a people-centred approach that includes human rights and human development, while also providing a new way of thinking about the various challenges facing the world in this century and how the international community should respond to them through various actions and normative acts, etc. In this regard, international and regional organisations promote human security using various frameworks and initiatives. Among the international and regional organisations, the Council of Europe stands out, comprising 46 member states, which since its establishment has sought to be a guarantor of human rights. Based on these arguments, in this article we intend to highlight the important role of the Council of Europe in ensuring and maintaining human security, with an emphasis on the promotion of human rights, highlighting the activities carried out by this organisation and some of its normative acts. Based on a critical analysis of bibliographic resources, through its content and conclusions, the article can become a relevant bibliographic source for the field of human security.
Keywords: human security, Council of Europe, human rights, activities, threats.
JEL Classification: K33, K38
- Lecturer Remus IONESCU
Controversies Regarding the Application of Decision No. 8/2025 of the High Court of Cassation and Justice of Romania▼Abstract▼:The decision referenced in the title of this article constitutes a jurisprudential reversal in the field and represents a continuation of the trajectory established by the Romanian Constitutional Court (CCR), beginning in 2017, through Decision No. 674/2016. That ruling determined that officers of the General Anticorruption Directorate may carry out acts of criminal investigation only within the strictly defined scope of Article 1 paragraph (2) of Government Emergency Ordinance No. 120/2005, and solely in relation to a specific category of offences committed exclusively by personnel employed within the Ministry of Internal Affairs. In the practical implementation of this decision, divergent opinions have already emerged. However, judicial practice has consistently identified appropriate solutions that respect the constitutional and legal framework in the field, thereby ensuring the effectiveness of the fundamental principles of legality and loyalty in the administration of evidence, as an expression of the right to a fair trial. Our scientific approach aims to identify solutions for the implementation of the cited decision from a practitioner’s perspective, without neglecting doctrinal considerations that reinforce the arguments presented, particularly those concerning the institution of nullity as a criminal procedural sanction and the concept of delegation, by reference to the jurisprudence of the Constitutional Court and the High Court of Cassation and Justice over time.
Keywords: decision, appeal in the interest of the law, fair trial, jurisprudence.
JEL Classification: K14
- Lecturer Lucian GHEORGHE
Continuation of the Employment Relationship of the Teaching and Research Staff in Higher Education in Romania After the Fulfillment of the Retirement Conditions▼Abstract▼Objectives of the study: Law no. 360/2023, provides in art. 46 para. (2) that the persons insured in the public pension system and who meet the conditions for enrollment in the pension may choose between granting the old-age pension and continuing the activity, with the annual agreement of the employer, until the age of 70. Therefore, an employee can continue the employment relationship with the employer as long as he wishes to do so, there is the employer's agreement for the continuation of the employment relationship and the employee does not open his right to retirement. If, however, the employee requests and obtains the old-age pension, it is understood that he does not want to continue the activity. The natural consequence of this state of affairs is the legal termination of the employment contract, and it is not possible to continue an existing employment relationship, regardless of whether the pension is in payment or nottag. In turn, Law no. 199/20232, which is a special normative act on the analyzed field, provides that "teaching and research staff retire at the age of 65. At the request of the teacher, the status of tenured teacher may be maintained until the end of the academic year in which he/she reaches retirement age." The difference in nuance between the two normative acts can be observed, in the sense that while Law no. 360/2023 explicitly provides for the criteria regarding the "fulfillment of the conditions for enrollment in retirement", in other words the cumulative fulfillment of the standard age condition but also of the minimum internship condition, Law no. 199/2023 only stipulates that "teaching and research staff retire at the age of 65". Research methods used: in this documentation we used the analytical method and the synthesis method. Results and implications of the study: therefore, according to the law on higher education, the priority for the retirement of teaching and research staff is only the criterion of age, not of internship. It is obvious that we are talking about a loophole of the law, because in the situation provided by the higher education law, in relation to the requirements imposed by law no. 360/2023, we cannot talk about a retirement of teaching and research staff without meeting the criterion of minimum contribution period. This is because, on the one hand, these categories of personnel are also insured in the public pension system (therefore they do not benefit from special pensions) and on the other hand, it is discriminatory in relation to the other categories of personnel referred to in this normative act, namely the teaching/research teaching staff and the auxiliary teaching/research staff, where the minimum internship condition and the standard age condition of 65 years are also provided for retirement. The study concludes with the advancement of a proposal for a ferenda law to amend this article.
Keywords: continuing employment relationship, teaching and research staff, public pension system.
JEL Classification: K31, K39
- Lecturer Iulian MITRAN
Social Education in Public Schools Between Regulatory Frameworks and Pedagogical Constraints: A Critical Analysis▼Abstract▼Social education is one of the compulsory subjects for grades V–VIII, its objective being to stimulate the process of socio-cultural literacy, thus contributing to the formation of a stronger civic culture within civil society. For future students, this discipline strengthens critical thinking skills, understanding of institutional mechanisms and fundamental rights, as well as the ability to participate responsibly in public life, which are indispensable prerequisites for academic and professional integration in a democratic and pluralistic environment. The civic education programme has a well-defined theme for each class, addressing topics related to critical thinking, Romania's institutional infrastructure, multiculturalism, and economic systems. There are a number of limitations and shortcomings when it comes to the topics covered in the curriculum and the way the textbooks have been designed. The fifth-grade curriculum covers children's rights, and as easy as the topic may seem, it is just as difficult when we consider that even a superficial understanding of it is completely dependent on addressing complex subjects such as democracy, freedom, coercion, power relations, state/political power, institutions/institutional structures, discrimination, marginalisation, etc. This paper aims to analyse the recommended curriculum and pedagogical approaches from a comparative European and international perspective, with the aim of identifying potential errors and developing proposals for their correction. The importance of social sciences and humanities has been underestimated when it comes to social awareness and civic participation, especially in the current global socio-economic context where hyper-individualism and major social inequalities have eroded the foundations of many societies.
Keywords: curriculum, education, pedagogy, citizenship, involvement, training, children's rights.
JEL Classification: I23, K23, Z13
- PhD. candidate Shkodran REXHAJ; Professor Zemri ELEZI
Organization and Functioning of Public Administration in Kosovo: From Legal Framework to Operational Competences▼Abstract▼:This paper examines the constitutional, legal, and organizational foundations of public administration in the Republic of Kosovo, focusing on its institutional development and operational functioning since 2008. The analysis begins with a review of the normative framework defining the principles of governance, decentralization, and the division of competences between central and local authorities. Furthermore, the paper provides a structured overview of the central level of public administration, the role of ministries and executive agencies, as well as accountability and oversight mechanisms. A significant part of the analysis is devoted to the organization of local government, including municipalities, their own and delegated competences, and inter-institutional relations that enable vertical and horizontal coordination of public administration. Drawing on contemporary literature and official documents from domestic and international institutions, the paper aims to provide a clear and well-argued understanding of public administration functioning in Kosovo, while identifying the key challenges affecting its efficiency. The findings highlight the importance of consolidating institutional capacities, harmonizing public policies, and strengthening legal oversight as prerequisites for a modern, transparent, and functional administration.
Keywords: public administration, legal framework, local governance, municipal competences, institutional organization, administrative functioning, Kosovo.
JEL Classification: H83, K23
- MSc. Era GJAKOVA; Associate professor Vedije RATKOCERI
Sexual Crimes: Harmonization of the Istanbul Convention with the Legal System of the Republic of North Macedonia▼Abstract▼:This paper examines sexual crimes in legal terms, respectively the position of this category of crimes in the legislation of the Republic of North Macedonia. The focus of this paper is the treatment of international acts that North Macedonia has ratified, and which address sexual crimes to see the compliance of domestic legislation with international standards. The epicenter of this paper is The Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence as well as the implementation of obligations and requirements which arise as a result of the signing and ratification of this convention. The Criminal Code of the Republic of Macedonia with the amendments of 2023, the Law on the Prevention and Protection against Violence against Women and Domestic Violence throughout this paper will be analyzed to examine their harmonization with the Istanbul Convention. The findings reveal significant gaps in the current legal system, which not only limit the effective prosecution of sexual crimes but also contribute to the re-victimization of survivors. The study underscores the urgent need for legislative reforms to ensure comprehensive protection and support for victims.
Keywords: sexual crimes, victims, Istanbul Convention, rights, harmonization.
JEL Classification:K14, K33
- Lecturer Adriana DEAC
General Features of the Limited Liability Company▼Abstract▼:In the sphere of professional traders legal entities, limited liability companies represent the type of trader most often encountered in international practice. What are the reasons that make the limited liability company so attractive in the Romanian legislation? What are the essential features of this type of company? This paper aims to provide answers to these questions using various methods of interpreting the legal provisions in force at this time. The study will analyze the main legal characteristics of the limited liability company, namely the low number of members, limited liability and reduced share capital.
Keywords: professional trader, limited liability company, Law no 31/1990, Civil Code, Law no. 265/2022, associates, constitutive act, share capital, assets, social parts, liability, National Trade Register Office.
JEL Classification:K22
- Lecturer Ovidiu-Horia MAICAN
The Legal Regime of Competition in Albania▼Abstract▼:The proper application of competition regulations serves as one of the foundational elements of Albania's free market system. As a result, these regulations are viewed as an economic constitution. The effective application of competition regulations can be carried out by governmental bodies through administrative actions (public enforcement) or directly by those impacted by violations of competition law via legal proceedings (private enforcement). In Albania's situation, public enforcement has undergone ongoing changes and improvements. Conversely, there have yet to be any instances of private enforcement, despite the opportunities for such actions, particularly in pursuing damages related to decisions made under Albanian Competition Law. Nonetheless, additional focus is required in areas such as the collection of penalties and the adoption of government recommendations, among others. To achieve fully effective implementation of competition regulations, all institutional participants, including the judiciary and businesses, must take part to ensure positive contributions to Albania's economic development.
Keywords: Albania, competition, reform, European Union.
JEL Classification:K33
