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Rigged Dissolution of the Canon Law Section at the Faculty of Law in Zagreb, and Trial against Its Head
Presentation by Prof. Ivan Milotić, PhD
From the beginning of the 19th century, the subject matter of canon (and ecclesiastical) law was studied at the Academy of Law in Zagreb (1850-1874) at a separate teaching section, but also within the scope of other courses and sections, with a permanent tendency of the expansion of its study scope. From 1859 onwards, canon law was taught by Matija Mesić, who in 1874 became the first Rector of the modern University of Zagreb. Two subjects were taught – the Ecclesiastical Law of the Catholic Church and Ecclesiastical Law of the Eastern Orthodox Church, within the Section for the Law of the Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox Church. From 1874 until 1945/1946, the Section for the Law of the Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox Church taught Ius canonicum, from 1901 onwards Ius matrimoniale, from 1924 onwards State Ecclesiastical Law, and finally the Constitution and Religious Relations. More than 80% of books in the Rara collection of the Library of the Faculty of Law in Zagreb falls within the category of canon (and ecclesiastical law) because it was one of the central subjects and sections.
By Decision of 1946, the Faculty Council abolished the Section and all its courses. However, in July 1946, disciplinary proceedings before the Disciplinary Court for the Teaching and Assistant Teaching Staff of the University of Zagreb were also initiated against M. Lanović, its Head and a long-time professor at the Faculty of Law (from 1927). The proceedings were initiated by the Deanery of the Faculty of Law in Zagreb by a letter dated 12 June 1946, on the basis of Article 9 indent 3 of the Provisional Disciplinary Regulations for the Teaching and Assistant Teaching Staff of the University of Zagreb. The proceedings were led by Marijan Horvat, Professor of Roman Law, as the prosecutor. It is interesting to note that Marijan Horvat studied and taught none other than Roman private law, which was, from the point of view of the new regime, unacceptable in the same way as canon (and ecclesiastical) law due to the emphasis on private property and legal individualism. The proceedings against Professor Lanović were actually proceedings against the Section and the subject matter and was entirely (in the sense of both the time and content) compatible to the Decision of the Faculty Council, marking the end of the Section.
The case file against Professor Lanović is actually a personal file of the Professor. The case file contains no charges, accusations or references to the breach or any criminal or disciplinary or any other legal rules, only references to the procedural provisions of the Provisional Disciplinary Regulations for the Teaching and Assistant Teaching Staff of the University of Zagreb. The proceedings were obviously initiated ex nihilo and according to a directive, without invoking any the legal basis (even without invoking any substantive legal rule) or containing any description of the charges brought against Professor Lanović, which suggests that the proceedings were an end in itself in order to defame and degrade the reputable and experienced Professor with the mere fact that some proceedings were initiated against him. In order to avoid further proceedings and a highly probable conviction for something unspecified, Professor Lanović succumbed to the psychological pressure and went into retirement. As an expert for the Latin language (incidentally, Horvat had not been taught Latin), often under a pseudonym, until the mid-1950s, Professor Lanović collaborated with the Publication of the Faculty of Law in Zagreb, and his most important contribution from that time were translation of the archival materials from Latin, which were published in the famous book by V. Bayer titled “A Deal with the Devil”.
Canon law – namely, Sources of Canon Law – continued to be studied in a limited fashion at the Section for the General History of Law and the State. Since 2019, it has been taught in the course titled Canon Law and the Croatian Legal System, which was introduced with strong objections for many years by nearly all professors of Roman law in Zagreb (one of the reason for the objections was the active role of Professor Horvat in the crackdown on that course and Section, whose book is still used today in classes, and which features the most fervent opponents of the reinstatement of the course on canon (and ecclesiastical) law by name. The latter will also be expounded on in this presentation.
Key words: canon law, ecclesiastical law, Mihajlo Lanović, Marijan Horvat, Section for Roman Law
