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The development of information technology and its use in everyday life must inevitably have an impact on public administration and its decision-making. Progress in artificial intelligence is also opening up wider opportunities for the use of automation of decision-making processes in public administration. Decision-making processes that once had to be handled by humans can now be automated. However, there must be a sufficient legal basis for this, setting out the legal limits of such automated decision-making. In this paper, the legal possibilities of automation of decision-making processes in the field of public administration in the Slovak Republic were examined, the obstacles that hinder the use of this tool were defined, as well as certain legal solutions eliminating or minimizing the consequences of these obstacles were outlined. The purpose of this paper was not to exhaustively describe and solve the problems with the automation of decision-making processes in public administration in the Slovak Republic. Rather, the purpose was to outline the problem areas that should be addressed in legal research in the coming period.

The paper focuses on the issue of automated decision-making in civil proceedings. First of all, attention is given to procedural institutes that direct and facilitate automated decision-making, in particular the digital court file and the legal framework of videoconferencing equipment, without focusing on electronic service of documents, which should be a separate paper. Asingle case of legal regulation of automated decision-making in the form of an electronic payment order is then analyzed (cf. Section 174a of the Code of Civil Procedure). For each of these fields, an analysis of digitalization to date is given, which is followed by a consideration of further developments. It also outlines the limits encountered by the use of modern technologies and the potential risks proposed adjustments.

This paper explores the evolution of the experimental paradigm in legal frameworks, tracing its development from early influences in comparative law to the contemporary application of regulatory sandboxes. It begins with the integration of empirical methods inspired by scientific research into the field of law. The exploration covers various aspects of experimental law, including federalism, comparative law, legisprudence, emergency and incremental legislation, soft law, sunset legislation, temporary regulations, and experimental legislation stricto sensu. The paper concludes by discussing the challenges and implications of balancing experimental law’s flexibility with the need for legal stability and security.

This paper examines how objectives of the European Union in the field of climate change affect the legal regulation of products and what impacts they also have on some connected issues. The current ecodesign legal regulation is based on the Ecodesign Directive and the particular requirements on products are then set in regulations following the Ecodesign Directive. The paper primarily focuses on the changes in ecodesign product regulation brought by the new Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation proposal. The issue of the proposed legal regulation connected with environmental claims is also addressed in the text as it is an important complement to the sustainable products legal regulation.

It is generally accepted that law consists of two main domains – private and public. At the same time, there is clear scepticism about the sharp separability of these domains. The problém of distinguishing private and public law is undoubtedly also a problem of public administration and its implementation as it is possible that the public purpose will also be fulfilled by private law norms. In addition, there may be legal institutes that combine more or less the norms of public and private law, for which the designation of hybrid legal institutes seems appropriate. However, such institutes may present some difficulties associated with legal dualism. The aim of this two-part paper (within its limited scope) is to provide a basic introduction to the issue of socalled hybrid legal institutes. In the first part of the paper, besides some general background, the text presents a triad of such institutes that are applied in the context of public administration and for which some debate over their legal nature could be observed in the domestic literature. In the second part (which will be published in a future issue of the journal), the text attempts to answer the research question of how to deal with these institutes, or rather considers some basic criteria for distinguishing private and public law in the context of public administration regulation.

This paper delves into the intricate intersection of the phenomenon of regulatory sandboxes and public law and focuses on the issue of legislative empowerment for the establishment of a regulatory sandbox. Based on the example of the Czech Republic, which lacks a fully operational regulatory sandbox, the study investigates the legislative prerequisites for initiating such a framework. Using the qualitative doctrinal research, the authors examine diverse conceptual frameworks, aiming to identify the optimal legislative approach for implementing and sustaining a regulatory sandbox. Notably, the study scrutinizes the viability of constructing a regulatory sandbox under general administrative empowerment clauses within the Czech legal context, considering the principles of legality and intra vires doctrine inherent in continental administrative law. The research contributes insights to the ongoing discourse on regulatory sandboxes, providing a nuanced understanding of the legislative prerequisites for their operation, with a focus on the specific challenges and opportunities within the Czech regulatory landscape.

The aim of the article is to draw attention to one of the current trends in climate litigation, in which the solution of a human rights issue becomes the essence of the dispute. This trend is known as the “human rights turn”, whereby the failure to fulfil or adequately fulfil national or international climate commitments is linked directly to the violation of fundamental human rights. The paper notes the impact of this trend on the interpretation of some fundamental human rights (in particular the right to life, the right to respect for private and family life and the right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment). It draws attention to the need to strike a balance between protecting the rights of present and future generations. The application of the principle of intergenerational solidarity and the principle of proportionality is a primary factor in addressing this issue.

Urban Exploration (URBEX) is a relatively recent leisure activity that is directly related to the exploration of abandoned and unused objects and areas, collectively referred to as brownfields. This survey of modern ruins is conducted for private purposes only, for the purpose of photo-documentation or video-visualization and their sharing within the community or presentation to the public. Due to the fact that the properties visited in this way are owned by other entities and there is often a real risk of damage to property and health, it is necessary to identify those legal aspects of URBEX that normatively regulate the relationship of both parties concerned. The aim of this paper is to define, within the framework of Czech legal standards, the rights and obligations of the property owner, which flow for them in connection with the realization of URBEX on real estate that is his property.

Europe is undergoing a massive transition to electricity generation from renewable energy sources. Photovoltaic power plants, representing one of the main renewable energy sources, require a lot of space, which is why agricultural land and building roofs are considered to be most suitable for such projects. However, performed analysis in the field of agricultural land, landscape or cultural heritage protection has shown that other public interests often constitute an important obstacle to the development of photovoltaic power plants, especially when the values represented by these interests are significantly affected by the project. The aim of this paper is to identify such cases, in addition to situations where the installation of photovoltaic power plants would be compatible with these public interests.

The following paper is the second part of an article dealing with the mining accident that took place in 2000 in the Romanian town of Baia Mare, which has been described as one of the worst environmental disasters since the Chernobyl accident. The first part focused on the circumstances of the accident, its consequences, and an analysis of the international legal framework in force at the time of the incident. The authors also describe the changes in international law adopted in response to the accident in Baia Mare and analyse the relevant case-law of the ECtHR related to the Baia Mare accident, Tǎtar v. Romania case. In the second part of the article, the authors discuss the response to the accident at the level of the European Union and the key changes in EU legislation adopted as a result of the accident. The article also points to changes made in national law in the Czech Republic, which directly or indirectly responded to the accident in Baia Mare. In conclusion, the authors relate this mine accident to the accident on the Bečva River that occurred in 2020.