The Department of Commercial Law and Business Law was one of first departments founded at the establishment of the Faculty of Law in 1973. The Department was set up as the Department of Business Law and Financial Law and its first Head of Department was assoc. prof. JUDr. Jozef Suchoža, CSc., a graduate of the Faculty of Law at Charles University in Prague. As evident from the designation, teaching activities and scientific research of the Department concentrated on Business Law and Financial Law. After the split, the Department’s division of Financial Law and its academic staff transferred to the Department of Financial Law, Tax Law and Economy.
On 1st November 1978 the Department of Business Law and Financial Law and the Department of National Economic Planning and Sector Economies merged into one unit with the designation – Department of Business Law, Financial Law and Essentials of National Economy. prof. JUDr. Jozef Suchoža, CSc. held the position of the Head of Department.
The merger of the department was planned within the reorganization of the structure of the University on the basis of which larger units were formed by the amalgamation of several smaller departments. Prof. Ing. Michal Baran, CSc., acting as the Rector of UPJŠ at that time, resolved to abolish the Department of National Economic Planning and Sector Economies and established the Department of Business Law, Financial Law and Essentials of National Economy.
Further changes in the evolution of the Department occurred in connection with the social and political changes in November 1989, when the Department expanded their profile by delving into Commercial Law, which was also reflected in its new designation as the Department of Commercial Law, Business Law and Financial Law. In 1997, following the transfer of prof. JUDr. Jozef Suchoža, DrSc., to the Faculty of Law of Matej Bel University in Banská Bystrica, the new designated Head of Department was doc. JUDr. Juraj Špirko, CSc and from 1999 assoc. prof. JUDr. Ján Husár, CSc.
On 19th February 2001 the Department of Commercial Law, Business Law and Financial Law was divided into the Department of Commercial Law and Business Law and the Department of Financial Law and Tax Law. This official designation – Department of Commercial Law and Business Law – has been used to the present day.
Upon the establishment of the Department, the academic staff at the Business Law division of the Department included the Head of Department, assoc. prof. JUDr. Jozef Suchoža, CSc. and JUDr. Juraj Špirko, the graduate of the Faculty of Law of Comenius University in Bratislava in the position of an assistant lecturer. Business Law courses at the Department were also conducted by external colleagues JUDr. Ján Fecák, CSc., JUDr. Ján Tkáč and JUDr. Ján Vosček. The Financial Law division encompassed assoc. prof. JUDr. Anton Slovinský, CSc. and Assoc. Prof. JUDr. Jordán Girášek, CSc., who at the same time lectured at the Faculty of Law at Comenius University in Bratislava. Shortly after the Department was established, JUDr. Stanislav Mráz joined the Financial Law division of the Department and later JUDr. Vladimír Babčák affiliated, both graduates of the Faculty of Law of Comenius University in Bratislava.
The first graduate of the Faculty of Law at Pavol Jozef Šafárik University in Košice who commenced her career at the Department was Mária Jurková (Bujňáková) as of 1st July 1976. In the same year, the Department engaged Ján Husár in the position of an assistant lecturer and in 1978 Janka Vykročová joined the ranks, both graduates in the field of Business Law. In the following years the Department engaged Gabriela Dobrovičová, Milena Barinková, Ivan Pisák and Kristián Csach. The members of the Department learned with deep sorrow of the sudden death of our former young colleague JUDr. Jozef Čorba, PhD. who passed away after less than 10 years of work at the Department.
