2025 was a year to remember at our faculty. We celebrated our 450th anniversary, launched new degree programmes and welcomed many inspiring speakers, yet we also felt the weight of budget constraints. Our year in a nutshell:

Starting 1 October 2022, Mirjam Sombroek-van Doorn has been appointed as Professor Law and Health.

Open Mic

Leiden Law Cast is a podcast made by Leiden Law School, Leiden University, for everyone who wants to learn more about current legal issues.

Eline van Slijpe wrote her Master of Philosophy thesis on intergenerational justice: does the current generation have obligations towards future generations? With this thesis she won the biannual J.C. Baak Prize.

Lecture

Lecture

Yousef Yousef (39), a successful entrepreneur in the water-quality industry, recently joined the Advisory Board at Leiden Law School. Read the interview about his career.

The sixth edition of the lecture series Duurzaamheid & Recht was held during the last semester. Once again, it attracted many students.

Carlotta Rigotti, Postdoc researcher at eLaw, and Eduard Fosch-Villaronga, Associate Professor at eLaw, delivered a lecture on AI and non-discrimination, engaging students with the Debiaser demo.

What happens when you let go of the traditional essay and instead invite creativity, imagination and experimentation? Honours College Law students found out with 'unessays', now showcased in an exhibition at the KOG.

Climate change, biodiversity loss and environmental pollution are urgent problems that call for close collaboration between lawyers and scientists. Dr Hilde Woker and Dr Jason Rudall, both Assistant Professors at Leiden University, are investigating the important interface between law and science.

The law and Artificial Intelligence (AI) applications need to be better aligned to ensure our personal data and privacy are protected. PhD candidate Andreas Häuselmann can see opportunities with AI, but dangers if this does not happen.

Leiden Law Cast is a podcast made by Leiden Law School, Leiden University, for everyone who wants to learn more about current legal issues.

2023 was a busy year for the faculty. Many colleagues won awards and important progress was made on the Kernvisie. We said farewell to the previous Faculty Board and welcomed our new Interim Board. All this and lots more. Watch the video below for an overview of 2023 in a nutshell.

Following 40 years of research into the legal equality principle, Emeritus Professor Titia Loenen gave her valedictory lecture in which she took stock of the progress that has been achieved. She focused on equal rights for women and is cautiously optimistic, despite the current rise in conservatism…

Do young people trust the law? That is what HC Law students are trying to find out. Regular guest speaker and social worker Carlito Jones invited the students to the Bezuidenhout-West neighbourhood centre in The Hague to talk to youth workers and neighbourhood police officers: what do they run into…

What started as pioneering work, has evolved over decades to become a renowned institute in 2025 with an internationally acclaimed master's programme. 'Almost everyone involved in the aviation and space sector knows us in Leiden.'

Stefan Sagel heeft op 10 februari de Gouden Peer arbeidsrecht van het juridische platform Mr. ontvangen. De hoogleraar arbeidsrecht kreeg de onderscheiding op voordracht van twintig juristen uit hetzelfde rechtsgebied.

Organisation

Limburg lawyer Roger Cox has caused a legal revolution. With high-profile cases against the Dutch state and Shell oil company, he transformed the law into a tool to enforce climate policy. Leidraad alumni magazine spoke to him about a life defined by radical choices for a better world.

Over the course of eight weeks, twelve law students spent several days at the various sectors of the Court of The Hague where they learned all about the work of judges, judicial assistants and legal advisers. At the final session on 10 March, they shared their experiences.

Both Child Law (LL.M.) and Public International Law (Advanced LL.M.) score above average across the board in the 2026 ‘Keuzegids Masters’. The assessment is based on the National Student Survey, in which students evaluate their own study programme.

If your work involves using radioactive materials or X-ray equipment, for example in scientific research or teaching, then you work with ionising radiation. On this page, you will find more information on how to do this safely and responsibly.

You can contact the privacy or security officers with questions about privacy or data security.

For each university unit, the ICT Shared Service Centre (ISSC) has an appointed ICT contact person responsible for applying for ICT facilities for research, teaching and operational management.

Leiden Law Cast is a podcast made by Leiden Law School, Leiden University, for everyone who wants to learn more about current legal issues.

The Executive Board of Leiden University has appointed Bart Joosen as Professor of Financial Law commencing on 1 July 2023. The chair is attached to the Hazelhoff Centre for Financial Law, part of the Institute of Private Law at Leiden Law School.

Until now, systematic discussions of gender, race and law have received little attention from Dutch law faculties, especially at the undergraduate teaching level. At the same time, public calls for discussion of these issues increases rapidly.

What happens when students are given the freedom to think outside the box? Honours College Law students got to try it through their 'unessays': an alternative final assignment. Their work will be on display in the KOG until 1 July.

Leiden Law School has moved up three places in the global ranking of law faculties and is now in 21st place.

The faculty Happy Holidays Drinks for all staff and student assistants was held on Tuesday 19 December. There was a great turn out and fun was had by all.

Leiden University hosted the 47th Telders International Law Moot Court Competition, which took place between 30 May and 1 June 2024.

The number of life sentences in the Netherlands is rising sharply. This is a clear response to the serious drugs violence and brutal attacks on our rule of law. However, criminal justice experts do not believe that this will deter future offenders from carrying out liquidations.

As of 1 May 2023, JPAO is continuing under the name Leiden Law Academy: a new name for the department that organises and facilitates our faculty’s legal postgraduate education (Juridisch PAO). A new event agency has also been added to the department to help organise the conferences and events of Leiden…

After more than five years, Professor Armin Cuyvers has handed over the position of Programme Director for the master’s programmes in Law to Marije Schneider, who started on 1 January 2024. Her vision, drive and experience mean she is well placed to fulfil the role.

Leiden Child Law Department at Leiden University in the Netherlands formally entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the African Child Policy Forum (ACPF)

Research

Vijf jaar na de overhandiging van ‘A History of Russian Law’, overhandigde emiritus hoogleraar Ferdinand Feldbrugge op 16 januari het tweede deel van zijn unieke overzichtswerk aan decaan van de Faculteit der Rechtsgeleerdheid Joanne van der Leun.

Leiden is the European City of Science in 2022. For 365 days our city will be home to this science festival, hosting lots of activities, lectures, workshops, excursions and exhibitions.

The Leiden University team won the 46th edition of the Telders International Law Moot Court Competition. Besides winning the final round, the team was also awarded the prize for Best Memorial on Behalf of the Respondent.