With N.C.'s help, Moldova's legal system is in the making.

Byline: Bill Cresenzo

A delegation from Moldova, a developing nation on the easternmost edge of Europe, just traveled to North Carolina to learn about the state's judicial system.

And North Carolina attorneys and judges learned from them, too.

The trip was part of the Open World Program. In October 2015, then-Gov. Pat McCrory and Moldova's former Prime Minister, Valeriu Strelet, renewed a memorandum of principles and procedures regarding an agreement that was originally signed between the state and the country in the 1990s after the Soviet Union collapsed.

Moldova, a landlocked country sandwiched between Romania and Ukraine, gained its independence, and NATO created the Partnership for Peace program, pairing states with new countries, and North Carolina has been a leader in helping it fulfill its potential. (The partnership was originally with the U.S. National Guard, and a civilian aspect was added in 1999.)

Sponsored by 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Allyson Duncan and the Open World Leadership Center in Raleigh, the visit took place in late October. The goal was to strengthen relations between the state and Moldova and give the visiting attorneys a good look about how the U.S. judicial system works.

North Carolina Secretary of State Elaine Marshall hosted an informational session for the group, giving an overview about the duties of her office, along with a lesson on state government Marshall is very involved with the partnership, with her office playing an integral role in coordinating visits from and providing guidance for Moldova citizens since 1999.

"They are attempting to improve their judiciary," Marshall said.

She made it clear to the group that it was up to them to take any advice they needed or didn't--what works for the U.S. might not work for Moldova. And, she said, that's just fine.

The judiciary system in Moldova is vastly different from that in the United States, said Petru Balan, one of the six lawyers from Moldova who toured Raleigh, the state Washington. And, at least by U.S, standards, it is rather convoluted.

"Moldova is a part of the continental law system, and is small and unitary--meaning, not a federal state," Balan said. "The courts apply the provisions of law, not the judicial precedents. The precedents formally are not mandatory for the courts, but, in fact, the courts avoid rendering different decisions in the similar cases."

Long-distance education

Matt Leerberg, a lawyer with the firm of Fox...