About the Author

Dr.jur. Gerhardt Bubnik, LL.M. (* 1935)

 is a prominent Czech lawyer who has been inducted in the Czech Lawyers Hall of Fame in 2016.

Gerhardt Bubník was also the first Czechoslovak who has received the LL. M. Degree from the Harvard Law School. For his Diploma dissertation he has received the Adison Brown Prize for the best work in international private law.

He specialized in international commercial transactions, international arbitration, copyright law and sport law.

He acted also as arbitrator in international commercial disputes in Prague, Vienna, Paris, Zurich and Lausanne.

He has been also recognized as a long term top international sport official and organizer in figure skating. He judged and refereed more than 30 years World Championships and Olympic Games and then served for 14 years as Legal Advisor of the International Skating Union (ISU). He has become well known also as a tough and consistent fighter against doping in sport.

During 2000 - 2012 he was the Chair of the Arbitration Commission of the Czech Olympic Committee which acted as an appellate body in cases of doping offences.

In 2007 he has been awarded by the International Olympic Committee the highest award, the Olympic Order and in 2009 the Prize for Fight against Doping in Sport by the same Committee.

G. Bubník is also a philanthropist and has donated in the form of scholarships substantial amounts for support of education of children from unprivileged families and for support of non-profit cultural and health institutions.

In 2017 he published in Czech his memoirs. The book was translated into English and this translation was published in 2020.

"A gentleman of British editing with a biography that would suffice for several lives".

This quote from the book Nestors of Czech Advocacy aptly captures the personality of Gerhardt Bubník.

Magdalena Sodomkova, journalist who worked with G. Bubník on the original Czech version wrote:

"I read his war story on the tram, straight from my cell phone and almost forgot to get out. His story could make a Hollywood film."