From 7 to 9 October, Riga Graduate School of Law (RGSL) is hosting the Nordplus Law Network Annual Meeting 2026, bringing together 35 participants from 18 universities across seven countries. This year’s meeting focuses on some of the most pressing developments in legal education, including the growing role of artificial intelligence and technology in teaching and learning, student-centred approaches to education, the role of legal education in strengthening the rule of law, international student mobility, and the future of cooperation among partner universities. Presently 25 law schools from eight Nordic and Baltic countries are members of the Nordplus Law Network, originally established more than 20 years ago.
The three-day meeting is led by Ulla Zumente-Steele, Coordinator of the Nordplus Law Network and Guest Lecturer at RGSL. The Annual Meeting provides member universities with an opportunity to reflect on their cooperation, exchange experience and good practices, discuss developments shaping legal education, and identify priorities for future collaboration.
The academic programme on 8 October will open with a welcome address by Assoc. Prof. Laura Ratniece, Rector of RGSL, who will also introduce participants to Riga Graduate School of Law. Representatives of the participating universities will then share recent developments at their home institutions before turning to one of the central themes of the meeting – contemporary challenges in legal education.
Assoc. Prof. Laura Ratniece will lead a session on student-centred approaches to legal education, exploring both teaching methods and the broader challenges currently facing law schools and legal education programmes. Through group work and discussion, participants will identify shared challenges and exchange perspectives on how these are being addressed across different institutions.
Particular attention will be devoted to artificial intelligence and technology in legal education. Assoc. Prof. Rūta Liepiņa of RGSL will lead a session combining a presentation, group work and discussion on the opportunities created by technological development, its impact on teaching and learning, and the new questions it raises for legal education.
The programme will also place legal education within the broader context of democratic and legal institutions. Prof. Ineta Ziemele, Judge at the Court of Justice of the European Union, will join the meeting online to address the role of legal education in strengthening the rule of law.
Alongside the academic programme, the Annual Meeting will provide a forum for the exchange of practical experience among partner universities. Participants will discuss trends in student mobility and its administration, different approaches to selecting outgoing exchange students, the use of Erasmus Without Paper (EWP) solutions for managing inter-institutional agreements and learning agreements, as well as the Network’s preparations for the next Nordplus and Erasmus+ programme cycle.
On 9 October, Ulla Zumente-Steele will present the Nordplus Law Network Coordinator’s report on the Network’s activities and funding. The session will review the 2025 project, including the workshop on artificial intelligence in legal education held in June, provide an update on the implementation of the 2026 project, and consider cooperation initiatives and activities at partner institutions relevant to the Network in the upcoming academic years.
Participants will also have an opportunity to gain an insight into student research at RGSL by attending part of the RGSL Student Research Paper Conference 2026.
The concluding session will focus on the future development of the Nordplus Law Network, including a new membership application, ideas and proposals for the 2027 project application, future areas of cooperation, and other matters of common interest to Network members. The next Nordplus Law Network Annual Meeting is scheduled to take place at Lund University, Sweden, in 2027.
The academic and working programme is complemented by opportunities for professional networking and informal exchange among colleagues from the participating universities. The programme will conclude with a guided tour of Riga for the international guests.
The Nordplus Law Network Annual Meeting 2026 takes place at Riga Graduate School of Law, Strēlnieku iela 4k-2, Riga, from 7 to 9 October 2026.