April 23rd, 2015, the Senate of Mykolas Romeris University (MRU) agreed to award an honorary MRU degree to Venice Commission President Gianni Buquicchio.
He was recognized for his efforts fostering constitutional values, for a meaningful contribution implementing the development of a legal state in the EU and throughout the world, and for efforts to develop international cooperation among universities.
Buquicchio, Heads the Venice Commission, also called the European Commission for Democracy through Law. The Commission, meets in Venice and is the Council of Europe's advisory body on constitutional issues. It provides legal advice to member states helps those wanting to bring their legal structures in line with European standards and international experience in the fields of democracy, human rights and the rule of law.
In 1967, Buquicchio graduated from the Law Faculty of the University of Bari. He went on to lecture at the Institute of International Law and Political Science of the University of Bari.
In 1970 he was a Visiting Professor at the Directorate of Legal Affairs at the Council of Europe.
He became an administrator in the Division of Public Law, Directorate of Legal Affairs of the Council of Europe in 1971-1974
As Head of the Division of the Legal Advisor and Treaty Office, Directorate of Legal Affairs at the Council of Europe 1990-1996, he was responsible for legal opinions requested by the Committee of Ministers, the Parliamentary Assembly and Secretary General, as well as by other departments and intergovenmental committees.
He was also responsible for administrative appeals (defending the Secretary General at the Administrative Tribunal of the Council of Europe).
From 1996-2009 he was Director of the Secretary of the European Commission for Democracy through Law. In this position he was responsible for the setting up of democratic institutions within Europe and beyond.
In December of 2009 Buquicchio was elected President of the Commission and re-elected in 2011 and 2013.
He holds honorary degrees from the Pavol Jozef Safarik University in Košice, Slovakia; from Romania's Bucharest University; and from the European University of Tirana in Albania.
Buquicchio has received numerous awards and medals including Grand officer of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic (2002), the Cross of Commander of the Republic of Lithuania in 2005 and the Grand Decoration of Honour in Silver with Star for Services to the Republic of Austria in 2009 and many others.