Integration through Law and Access to Justice in the European Union
Thursday 24th August | 10.15 am
Keynote I Kaikōrero Matua
Overview:
With the aim of ending the frequent and bloody conflicts that culminated in the Second World War, in the 1950s European politicians began the process of building what we know today as the European Union. From the free movement of people, goods, services and capital to common standards in areas such as consumer protection and procedural rights, countries within the European Union have moved closer and closer without losing their own identities and legal systems. Her Excellency Nina Obermaier will share how EU countries work together to achieve their own goals and the goals of the European Union, including access to justice.
Her Excellency Nina Obermaier
European Union Ambassador to Aotearoa New Zealand.
Nina Obermaier has been the Ambassador of the European Union to New Zealand since November 2019.
From October 2016 to November 2019 she served as the adviser to the Deputy Chief Negotiator for the UK's withdrawal from the European Union. She was the European Commission Lead Negotiator for issues related to Ireland/North Ireland.
She worked as the Deputy Head of Division in charge of EU relations and negotiation with Switzerland between 2013 and 2016. She was the Deputy Head of Unit in charge of protection and crisis management from 2009 to 2013. She has covered portfolios relating to Israel and the West Bank/Gaza and information society.
Prior to her positions at the European Union, she was a senior producer and journalist for ARD (German Television) from 1999 to 2000.
Mrs Obermaier attained an M.A. in European Studies at the College of Europe Natolin, Poland. She also has an M.A. in Political Science and History from the University of Hanover in Germany, and the University of Sussex in the United Kingdom.
She speaks four languages; English, German, French, and Dutch.
