Biografia naukowa Profesora Romana Budzinowskiego

Biografia naukowa Profesora Romana Budzinowskiego


Academic biography of Professor Roman Budzinowski
It does not seem long ago that Professor Roman Budzinowski was a member of the younger, and then of the middle-aged generation of Polish academic lawyers. Realising that next year will mark the 50 th anniversary of the start of his university career comes as a real surprise to me and invites some reflection. I have been following his professional development and on many occasions have published reviews of his scholarly work. In writing this biography I see a perfect opportunity to trace the path followed by Professor Budzinowski throughout his professional life, and to highlight and summarise his achievements.
Roman Budzinowski was born on 21 December 1950 in Głogów. In 1968 he began law studies at the Faculty of Law and Administration of Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań, which he completed in 1972, graduating with honours. After three months as a full-time court trainee at the Provincial Court in Zielona Góra, on 1 December of the same year, he was employed as an asystent at the Department of Agricultural Law of Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań. From 1973 to 1975 he was also a part-time court trainee, and having passed an examination qualified as a judge. In 1981 he was awarded a PhD in law.
One of the main difficulties in the attempt to present an accurate account of his scholarly activities and achievements is their very wide range and diversity. Hence my decision to divide his university career into separate fields and strands, to arrange them in order and sequentially. The very nature of this biography determines that these considerations will begin with an attempt to draw together the various strands of Professor Budzinowski's strictly academic output.
Roman Budzinowski's academic background drew on the Poznań school of agricultural law founded by his doctoral dissertation supervisor, Professor Wiktor Pawlak who rooted the School in administrative law.
However, as a participant in a seminar led by Professor Zbigniew Radwański, the young Roman became aware of the importance of civil law issues as well. These influences will be evident along the entire path of his later professional development, and in his skilful combination of civil and administrative law issues.
Yet, the nature of the research subsequently undertaken by Professor Budzinowski was determined by his relationship with an outstanding Poznań theoretician of law, Professor Zygmunt Ziembiński. From the first year of his studies, the young student became fascinated with the person and achievements of Professor Ziembiński and was one of the laureates of the logic Olympiad. He eventually opted for a seminar in civil law, but his contacts with the professor developed over the years. It was under the influence of Professor Ziembiński that Roman Budzinowski wrote an article on legal measures in agricultural policy, and published it in "Studia Prawnicze" (Legal Studies) in 1977. As for a young researcher, that article was outstandingly effective and theoretical in nature.
His doctoral dissertation, entitled "Przymusowe przejmowanie nieruchomości rolnych" (The compulsory acquisition of agricultural land) published in 1985 by Państwowe Wydawnictwo Naukowe, showed its author's inclination to theoretise and his skills in synthesis. The young Doctor of Law did not confine himself merely to the analysis of each of the very numerous legislative acts whose provisions aimed at the compulsory takeover by the State of agricultural land. Such an approach would probably have been easier, but it would not have brought the expected results and academic outcomes. It must be remembered that the dissertation was written in a period when it was not easy for private farm owners, when the protection of private property, and agricultural land in particular, was threatened with "socialisation." Therefore writing the dissertation was not only a challenging task, but its very subject was also a very important issue from the political and practical point of view. As Professor Stelmachowski stated, the issue of the compulsory acquisition of land became, especially at the end of the seventies, a very "hot" topic.
In his dissertation Professor Budzinowski decided to follow a more difficult path, but one which would ensure more useful and permanent scholarly results. He decided to contrast various solutions of the compulsory acquisition of land with the essence ownership rights and certain institutions for a long time known to the European legal system, and which served the purpose of depriving the owner of these rights. Examples of such institutions included expropriation, confiscation and nationalisation. For this reason he analysed in detail only those issues that were essential from the point of view of this contrast. Contrary to its title, the dissertation did not fall exclusively within the framework of public law and contained broad considerations of civil law nature including the right to ownership (property law). Although the forced takeover of land is in Poland today rather an issue of mere historical significance, many of the statements presented in the dissertation remain relevant today, especially those regarding the relationship between private ownership and the State.
For example, the thesis that the level of protection of ownership rights is determined by the ease with which land can be taken over (or away) from its owner is still valid today; or the conclusion that the more difficult it is to take over the land, the higher is the level of protection of the right of ownership. Thus, it is not surprising that at the time it was presented the dissertation was regarded as outstanding by the reviewers (Professors Radwański and Stelmachowski) and the book written on the basis of it received wide recognition and was welcomed by the doctrine. It also received three published reviews in Polish journals (one by the present author) and one review note in the Italian journal "Rivista di Diritto Agrario." The book was also awarded the third-degree prize by the Minister of Science and Higher Education and proved very useful in the jurisprudence practice of administrative courts and the Constitutional Tribunal.
While exploring in greater depth the notion of private ownership in agriculture, Professor Budzinowski naturally studied the concept of the agricultural farm and this interest was subsequently reflected in several of his publications in the first half of the eighties of the 20 th century. The motivation to undertake detailed research in this field came during his study leave spent at the Istituto di Diritto Agrario Internazionale e Comparato in Florence in 1987/1988. The stay at the Institute also contributed to his choice of subject for his habilitation dissertation a few years later. In Italian law the concepts of a farm and especially of an agricultural enterprise are basic conceptual categories, keystones of the whole doctrine of agricultural law. The habilitation dissertation entitled "The concept of an agricultural holding in agricultural law," published in 1992, addressed issues related to an agricultural farm in a general, extended and innovative way. On the basis of this dissertation Roman Budzinowski was awarded the degree of Doctor of Laws in the field of civil law and agricultural law.
Although the author took the decision not to make his dissertation a comparative legal study, he made excellent use of foreign legal solutions and relevant literature covering the research problem. Despite the fact that a mere presentation of Western European structures in this field would have sufficed to produce an interesting and highly significant work, Roman Budzinowski opted for a much more demanding approach -he treated the wealth of material at his disposal in an illustrative way and used it as a basis for conducting his own investigations. At the same time he gave up the analysis of the numerous legal definitions of a farm that existed in Polish legislation, and focused on determining certain regularities present in the legislative activity of those times. As a result, he succeeded in formulating the concept of an agricultural holding.
Among other things, the author defended the view of the evolution of the normative constructions of an agricultural holding from object-oriented and static to functional formulations, and of the transition in legal regulations from agricultural land (already treated as a farm) to an agricultural holding as a set of various components to an ("agricultural") enterprise.
Departing from considering an agricultural holding as a pure subject and showing its function was essential for its further doctrinal treatment. The former approach in which the concept of an agricultural holding was reduced to the assets it represented was quite commonly accepted in the literature up to that time. If, however, an agricultural holding was a group of components organised in order to carry out an agricultural activity, then what deserved attention was its legal structure, the criteria for recognising a unified set of components organised into an agricultural holding, and the legal qualification and functions of the material components of this holding.
This form of analysis based on the subjective approach to an agricultural holding no longer treated as a property unit, is repeated in contemporary publications on agricultural law. However, what constituted a complete novelty was the development of the functional approach to an agricultural holding, including the agricultural activity, the organisation and operation of a holding and the legal status of the entity that ran it. It was a stimulus for scholars, including Roman Budzinowski, to address in literature such issues as: the concept of agricultural activity, the role of factual activities and legal acts (especially entering into contracts) in the process of organising and operating an agricultural holding or the status of a farmer as an entrepreneur.
The book discussed here undoubtedly was one of the most theoretical works in the Polish doctrine of agricultural law for ten years. It met with universal recognition, reflected for example by my review published in the "Państwo i Prawo" (State and Law) journal, the review of professor Antoni Carrozza in "Rivista di Diritto Agrario," and the second prize won in the "Państwo i Prawo" competition for the best habilitation dissertation (the first prize was not awarded). Despite the passage of almost thirty years since its publication, it remains a frequently referred to publication in the literature on the subject.
The time when Professor Budzinowski became an independent scholar coincided with a difficult period for those engaged in agricultural law and the science of this law. The transformation of the social and economic system in Poland after 1989 resulted in a significant reduction of agricultural legislation. The provisions governing the functioning of agriculture under a planned economy system were repealed, but no "new" laws were passed or at least there was no significant legislative activity in this regard that would take into account the conditions of a market economy. The "crisis of agricultural law," as Professor Walerian Pańko referred to this situation, gave rise to concerns among agricultural lawyers about the future of this field of law. It was then that Dr hab. Roman Budzinowski published a series of works in which he voiced his opinion on this matter, asserting the temporary character of the existing legislative crisis. He also rightly claimed that the best remedy to address the problem would be to extend and intensify research on the theoretical aspects of a system of separate agricultural regulation.
Professor Budzinowski's unquestionable talent for carrying out theoretical research and formulating original legal concepts based on it became evident precisely in the context of this crisis. It impelled him to start extensive research into the crucial issues of agricultural law. As a result, he authored a series of very interesting, innovative and detailed works, such as, for example: "Prawo rolne między historią a przyszłością" (Agricultural law between history and the future, 1993), "Zagadnienie funkcjonalności prawa rolnego w okresie przejściowym" (Issues of the functionality of Agricultural Law in the Transitional Period, 1995), "Czynniki rozwoju prawa rolnego" (Factors in the development of agricultural law, 1998), "Próby kodyfikacji prawa rolnego" (Attempts to codify agricultural law, 2001), "Zmiany prawa rolnego. Tendencje rozwoju" (Changes in agricultural law. Developmental tendencies, 2002), or "O potrzebie refleksji teoretycznej w prawie rolnym" (On the need for theoretical reflection in agricultural law, 2005).
These works heralded the outstandingly theoretical character of Professor Budzinowski's scholarly "workshop" which became evident in a book published in 2008 (called "professorial book") entitled "Problemy ogólne prawa rolnego. Przemiany podstaw legislacyjnych i koncepcji doktrynalnych" (General issues of agricultural law. Changes in legislative basis and doctrinal concepts). The book was a summary of his many years of study and crowned his research; it included comparative law and the basic theoretical issues important for the development of agricultural law and its legal science. At the same time it was the first comprehensive study of agricultural law in the Polish doctrine devoted to theoretical issues, amounting at least to an outline of the theory of this discipline.
The community of Polish agricultural lawyers had long waited for such a work. I myself -in the context of the political transformation of agriculture in the nineties -pointed out the need for a new look at agricultural law as a discipline of law, and on the need for a new definition of this discipline, its subject matter and scope of regulation. Professor Budzinowski added some more arguments derived from the condition of Polish agricultural law, writing: "Undoubtedly, the changes in legislation connected with Poland's membership of the European Union and the inclusion of our agriculture in the Common Agricultural Policy have opened a new stage in the development of agricultural law. This fact, justifies the need to address theoretical issues, just as in the past A. Stelmachowski faced the enactment of a new civil code" (p. 12). In these new conditions, as he noted "Every lawyer specialising in the field of agriculture must face the innovations brought about by Community law, and also reflect on the limits of his own discipline" (p. 15).
Professor Budzinowski coped with this challenge successfully. He identified the developmental factors of legal regulations in agriculture, linked them to the evolution of agricultural legislation and against this background made an attempt to determine the place of agricultural law in the system of law and changes of doctrinal concepts arising from it. These issues are closely related to one another because the developmental factors of agricultural law influence the introduction and the shape of legal regulations, while the latter constitute the basis for the formulation of theoretical concepts in the shaping of agricultural law as a branch of the system of law. The author did not stop at quoting and describing the doctrinal standpoints, but had the courage to formulate his own judgments and proposals, differing from those accepted in the science so far.
The considerations were carried out into account the historical and comparative legal aspects. In spite of such an extensive reliance on the existing doctrine (the list of literature used in the work contains almost five hundred positions, more than half of which are foreign publications), the monograph is thoroughly original. It opened a new stage of development in the science of agricultural law in Poland, and served as an inspiration for its future expansion. The book may be regarded as a voice in the discussion going on in the Western European science about the key theoretical issues of agricultural law. Its positive reception was confirmed by two reviews published in legal journals, and very numerous citations in the literature.
What is more, many issues only briefly touched upon in the monograph were elaborated on, given a deeper analysis and then published in Poland and abroad in separate articles. In this way we received an interesting series of works on extremely current theoretical problems of agricultural law, in which Professor Budzinowski pointed to the need for strengthening the science of that law. Some examples of his articles include: "Sprzeczności rozwojowe prawa rolnego" (Developmental contradictions of agricultural law, 2008), "Współczesne tendencje rozwoju prawa rolnego" (Contemporary tendencies of the development of agricultural law, 2009), "Zagadnienia funkcjonalności prawa rolnego" (Issues of the functionality of agricultural law, 2014), or "Współczesne wyzwania związane z żywnością i ich rola w kształtowaniu polityki rolnej i prawa rolnego" (Contemporary food challenges and their role in shaping agricultural policy and law, 2015).
Some publications were also "ideological" in character, with a clearly defined message. To those belong for example "O potrzebie nauczania prawa rolnego" (On the need for teaching agricultural law, 2010), "O potrzebie rozwoju nauki prawa rolnego" (On the need for the development of the science of agricultural law, 2012), "Podstawowe założenia metodologiczne w nauce prawa rolnego" (Basic methodological assumptions in the science of agricultural law, 2013), "O potrzebie opracowania i koncepcji Systemu Prawa Rolnego" (Developmental needs and concepts of the "System of Agricultural Law," 2020). One of these articles, published also in English in the "CEDR Journal of Rural Law" (2020), expressed certain concerns, but also satisfaction with the state of development of the science of agricultural law in Poland in the first fifteen years of Poland's membership of the EU, and presented the achievements of Polish agricultural science against the background of Western European doctrine. All of these studies were the result of Professor Budzinowski's thorough and in-depth comparative studies.
His scientific output covering over 200 positions cannot, however, be reduced entirely to the theory of agricultural law, or to the problems of the development of this branch of law. Although these studies represent, in a certain way, the academic trademark of their author, the scope of his scholarly interests is much wider and more varied, and so are his means of expression. Apart from the three above-mentioned monographs, he is also a co-author and editor of four others, including one published in Germany in English (the other co-author and co-editor was Professor Ines Härtel from the Viadrina University in Frankfurt Oder ("Food Security, Food Safety, Food Quality," Nomos 2016). Professor Budzinowski is the co-author and editor (as well as the originator of its topic) of the Congress Book of the Unione Mondiale degli Agraristi Universitari entitled "XV World Congress of Agricultural Law. Contemporary challenges of Agricultural Law: among Globalisation, Regionalisation and Locality," Poznań 2018).
The subjects of his research work, especially in the later period, are very varied, too. In the course of time, apart from the continuation of the previous trends in his research (for example, concerning the status of a private farm in the socio-economic system, "agricultural" contracts in notarial practice, or generational change in agriculture) new ones appeared as a consequence of the development of the discipline and as a consequence of the scientific maturity of the researcher. For example, articles on the adjustment policy, food law, or the future of the Common Agricultural Policy from the Polish perspective, written at the beginning of this century, or on the place of Polish law and agricultural periodicals in comparison with the journals published in Western Europe. In spite of a certain inclination towards questions of civil law, Professor Budzinowski also addressed issues concerning agricultural administration. Every topic he explored and discussed was important for the development of the science of agricultural law, and some influenced the practice (of the application) of law in Poland. In the years 2011-2012 Professor Budzinowski was a member of the Civil Law Codification Committee headed by Professor Zbigniew Radwański, that worked on the drafting of contracts for the use of things and rights.
Professor Budzinowski has written over thirty reviews, most of which have subsequently been published, and more than twenty of which are reviews of foreign books -Italian, German, Spanish and English. Through those reviews he introduced Polish readers to the achievements of the Western European doctrine.
To sum up, the distinctive features of Professor Budzinowski's professional work are characterised by a high degree of theory and theoretical insight featured in a great number of publications on varied and frequently very topical issues. His scientific accomplishments are among the most impressive scholarly achievements in Polish studies in agricultural science.
The other, and closely related, main strand of Professor Budzinowski's scholarly activity is his editorial work. Professor Budzinowski was the scientific editor of five volumes of the periodical "Prawo i Administracja" (Law and Administration) published in 2002-2006 by Wyższa Szkoła Biznesu in Piła. In 2007 he succeeded in creating another nationwide agricultural law journal (biannual) entitled "Przegląd Prawa Rolnego" (Agricultural Law Review), published by the Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań, of which he became the editor-in-chief and scientific editor. "Przegląd Prawa Rolnego" (publication indicator -70 points) has already had twenty nine consecutive issues and is currently the only Polish journal of law and agriculture. It stands out in terms of its degree of internationalisation not only because of the global character of the topics it covers, but also owing to numerous articles by foreign authors in their original languages, as well as articles by Polish authors, usually in English. In some issues of the journal, foreign studies constitute an important part of its first section, provided by European (mainly from Germany, Italy and Spain) as well as South American authors. This certainly has a positive impact on the journal's citation rate, and interest in the articles published in "Przegląd Prawa Rolnego" can be seen in various countries around the world.
Professor Roman Budzinowski deserves the respect and -I do not hesitate to use these words -the gratitude of the whole Polish community of agricultural lawyers for founding and editing "Przegląd Prawa Rolnego". Thanks to him there exists a quality journal in which researchers can have their articles published, and which also provides them with an insight into the current Polish and European agricultural legislation and agricultural case law. Moreover, what is also extremely important and useful, especially for younger researchers, are the bibliographical notes with information on relevant European and American literature, legislation and agricultural doctrine.
In my opinion, his editorial work should be regarded as one of the most important achievements among the wide and diverse activities of Professor Budzinowski.
He is very active in the international arena as well, which is the third strand in his academic career crowned with numerous successes. This internationalisation has several aspects. On the one hand, it manifests itself in more than thirty research papers published abroad, inter alia, in Italian, German, Swiss, French or Spanish journals, as well as in Mexico and Argentina. On the other hand, he has attended and given talks at many conferences abroad. The articles published in foreign journals are not only informative, but of international significance as they address issues relevant to the development of the science of agricultural law on a global scale.
He also managed to use his frequent study visits to other institutions, especially the Istituto di Diritto Agrario Internazionale e Comparato in Florence, for his own scientific development as well as a chance to establish contacts and scientific cooperation with the most renowned European and South American agricultural lawyers. In cooperation with Professor Francesco Adornato from the University of Macerata (currently the Rector of this University) he organised five joint Polish-Italian scientific conferences (called tavole rotonde) on topics of mutual interest. In turn, together with Professor José Martínez of the University of Göttingen he co-organised two Polish-German conferences on important issues of agricultural law. Further, in cooperation with Professor Ines Härtel from the Viadrina University in Frankfurt (Oder) he co-organised two conferences on food law. Two other conferences were organised in cooperation with Professor Trinidad Vázquez Ruano and Professor Ángel Sánchez Gutiérrez of the University of Jaén in Spain.
Thanks to Professor Budzinowski, many Polish agricultural lawyers from various academic centres were able participate in all the scholarly events that he organised or co-organised. In this way the achievements of the Polish science of agricultural law were promoted and the scholars had the opportunity to establish their own contacts. Without any doubt Professor Roman Budzinowski is currently the most renowned and widely-recognised Polish agricultural lawyer and scholar, both in Europe and worldwide. This is evident not only in his foreign publications and conference activities, but also in his participation on the scientific committees of conferences organised abroad, as well as his membership of the editorial committees of several scientific journals, including "Agricoltura Istituzioni Mercati," "Diritto Agroalimentare," "EU Agrarian Law (The Journal of the Slovak University of Agriculture in Nitra)" and the "CEDR Journal of Rural Law." Thanks to his recommendation, a number of articles by Polish agricultural lawyers have appeared in the latter, which is a journal published by the European Committee of Agricultural Law (Comité Européen de Droit Rural).
Entrusting the Polish Association of Agricultural Lawyers, and directly Professor Budzinowski as Chairman of the Board of the Association, with the organisation of the XV World Congress on Agricultural Law under the auspices of the Unione Mondiale degli Agraristi Universitari, was an expression of the Professor's recognition by the international community. The Congress took place in Poznań in September 2018 and brought together speakers from several continents. Its organisation was highly appreciated by the participants and the Congress received a very high rating. The follow-up of the Congress was the already mentioned congress book with over sixty articles written in several congress languages. As a natural consequence of this success, the organisation of the XXX European Congress of Agricultural Law was, for the first time, entrusted by the Comité Européen de Droit Rural to Polish agriculturalists. This 2019 Congress on Food sovereignty, food security and the contribution of agricultural law was also held in Poznan and was again very well received and highly praised by the CEDR authorities and participants.
Looking back, from the perspective of 60 years, on the evolution and development of agricultural law in Poland, I can say with full conviction that while Professor Stelmachowski was the first Polish agricultural scientist to establish academic contacts with Western European agricultural lawyers, Professor Budzinowski, thanks to his work, is currently the best known and internationally most widely recognised Polish agricultural scholar, while Polish agricultural lawyers have become internationally recognised as active and a distinctive group of experts in agricultural law.
Professor Budzinowski has managed perfectly to combine his extensive research activities with teaching, this being the fourth strand (and aspect) of his university career.
He taught a variety of subjects (lecturing and conducting classes) at the Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań: agricultural law, agricultural policy and agricultural law of the European Union as well as agricultural administration. In the 1990s he also taught classes in civil law, when agricultural law was included as an option in the legal studies curriculum. He taught all kinds of students: undergraduates, post-graduates, and doctoral students.
In doing so, he managed with success, to interest his students in agricultural law which is not an easy subject. Right from the beginning of his university career, as an academic supervisor of the agricultural law section of the Scientific Circle of Administrative Law Students, he co-organised two study camps.
He was the supervisor of over 400 M.A. students and conducted master's seminars on agricultural law and, for a number of years, on civil law as well.
His long-term contribution to the development of a textbook on agricultural law, first edited by Professor Andrzej Stelmachowski and then by Professor Paweł Czechowski, should be recognised as his particular contribution to the teaching of agricultural law in Poland.
His teaching activities extended beyond the university and on numerous occasions he lectured on agricultural real estate trading to notary trainees, and was a lecturer at the Postgraduate Studies for Notaries. He, too, initiated a close cooperation between agricultural lawyers and notaries, and in 2000 organised the first joint scholarly conference in the castle in Rydzyna near Leszno. This conference was held together with the nationwide convention of chairs and departments of agricultural law. This cooperation between the two communities has continued to the present day.
Professor Budzinowski has had significant and important successes in the field of educating and tutoring young agricultural academics, which should be considered the fifth strand or theme of his academic work.
The Department of Agricultural Law whose chair has been held by Professor Budzinowski since 1999 (renamed the Department of Agricultural, Food and Environmental Law in 2020), currently employs five staff: one professor, two university professors and two assistant professors. The Department's staff teach students (in English too) in all fields of law offered by the Faculty. Apart from that, between 1996 and 2012 Professor Budzinowski lectured on agricultural law at the University of Life Sciences in Poznań (former University of Agriculture) where between 2007 and 2012 he held the position of Head of the Department of Economic Law and Agricultural Law, which has significantly contributed to the strengthening of the Poznan community of agricultural lawyers.
He was the supervisor of six PhD students, on three of whom there has already been already been conferred the degree of doktor habilitowany and who now hold the title of a University Professor; two other doctoral dissertations are in progress. He was also a reviewer of three post-doctoral theses and of the award of the title of professor of legal sciences, as well as chairman and member of several Habilitation committees. In April 2020, he was also a member of the international committee appointed to conduct the competition for the position of professor at the Scuola Superiore Sant'Anna in Pisa (Italy).
His organisational activities at his Alma Mater were extremely extensive and clearly they did not stand in the way of his purely scholarly work; these two aspects of his university work were successfully combined. The biography of Professor Budzinowski is the best example that such a combination is perfectly possible as his administrative commitments constituted another continuous, strong and successful strand of activities.
In the years 1975-1982 Professor Budzinowski was already the Dean's plenipotentiary and chairman of the Faculty Committee for student financial aid and in the years 1982-1984 he was the Rector's advisor and plenipotentiary for student aid and a member of the University's Student Social Unit. In the winter semester of the academic year 1992-1993 he was Head of Extra-mural Law Studies, and in the years 1993-1999 he held the office of Vice-Dean of the Faculty of Law and Administration. During that period he also worked with the Rector's Committee for Student Affairs. This was a difficult and busy time during which he had to organise extramural studies, adjust administrative services to provide for the needs of a large number of students, develop new curricula and plan the many courses offered.
In the years 1999-2002, Professor Budzinowski was a member of the Legal Affairs Committee of the Senate. His greatest successes, however, were undoubtedly achieved while serving as Dean of the Faculty of Law and Administration of Adam Mickiewicz University. He held this office for two terms. He was also a member of the Rector's Committee on Personnel and Finance and a member of the Statute Committee. It is mainly thanks to his work and involvement that in the ranking of 2017 the Faculty of his Alma Mater was awarded, as the only one in Poland, the A plus scientific category. The excellent organisation of the 100 th anniversary celebrations of the Faculty in 2019 will always be remembered as well. Wishing to integrate graduates from the Faculty, he led to the establishment of the Association of Graduates and Friends of the Faculty of Law and Administration at Adam Mickiewicz University, was one of its founding members and its first president in 2017-2021.
Professor Budzinowski's organisational activities exceeded the scope of his Department and his Alma Mater. He was equally successful in integrating and organising the community of Polish agricultural lawyers. He is a founding member of the Polish Association of Agricultural Lawyers (since 2003 a member of the Board, and since May 2014 the chairman). His work for the strengthening and integration of the communities of Polish and foreign agricultural lawyers is most notable. Among other projects undertaken with a view to international integration is the Professor Andrzej Stelmachowski Competition for the best research paper in agricultural law, which has already taken place five times. Professor Budzinowski is also a member of Unione Mondiale degli Agraristi Universitari. Thanks to his recommendation a large group of Polish agricultural lawyers have joined this prestigious organisation this year. At the XXVIII Congress of the European Committee for Agricultural Law (Comité Européen de Droit Rural), held in Potsdam in September 2015, Professor Budzinowski was elected Vice President, and re-appointed to the office in September 2017 at the CEDR Congress in Lille, and in Poznań in September 2019.
He has received more than twenty Rector's awards for scholarly and administrative work, including first and second degree awards, as well as Dean's awards. He was also honoured with the silver medal "Labor omnia vincit" by the Hipolit Cegielski Society, and in 2019 he received the title of "Leader of Organic Work" and the statue of "Honorary Hipolit" for promoting the idea of organic work. In recognition of his work and attitude, on 21 November 2019, on the recommendation of the Polish People's Party, the Sejm appointed him a member of the State Tribunal.
To sum up, I would like to state once again that I am convinced that such rich and varied scholarly, didactic and administrative activities make Professor Budzinowski a man who would have been in the past called -homo verus academicus -true university man.
At the same time his merits and achievements place him at the forefront of Polish agricultural lawyers who currently are, thanks to his great efforts and enormous work, among the Europe and the world's most active researchers in the science of agricultural law. I am convinced that Professor Budzinowski, alongside Professor Stelmachowski, has contributed the most to the development and stabilisation of agricultural law understood as extremely significant socially, but also as an important branch of law in the scientific, didactic and legislative sphere.