The Private International Law Department provides academic education and performs research in the field of private international law.

We would all like to live in a world in which individuals feel safe, conflicts are resolved peacefully and the interests of future generations are taken into consideration. At Leiden University legal scholars investigate to what extent public international law meets the needs of a globalised society.…

How do commissions of inquiry operating in conflict situations utilize international law, and how can inquiry findings be utilized by other bodies belonging to the international legal community?

Public International Law is a one-year Master’s specialisation at the internationally acclaimed Leiden Law School at Leiden University. The programme focuses on the legal framework that governs international relations in an increasingly complex global society.

Amy Strecker assesses the institutional framework for landscape protection, analyses the interplay between landscape and human rights, and links the etymology and theory of landscape with its articulation in law.

On 30 June 2016, Eesa Fredericks is expected to defend his Ph.D.-thesis ‘Contractual Capacity in Private International Law’ in Leiden. Supervisors are prof. Sierd J. Schaafsma (Leiden) and prof. Jan Neels (Johannesburg).

Just published: Nederlands internationaal privaatrecht Special issue: Private international law and finance

Are UN sanctions regimes in need of further formalization in terms of substantive design, procedural architecture and with a view to regulating and governing the interplay with other regimes?

Leiden University’s Master of Laws in Advanced Studies in Public International Law (L.L.M.) is an intensive, high-level postgraduate programme. It offers two specialisations: International Criminal Law and Peace, Justice, and Development.

Loopholes in international tax legislation contribute to the misuse of tax rules by multinationals. Leiden University legal experts investigate how the complex national and international tax rules can be made more consistent in order to create a better tax system.

The international legal order is in a process of transformation. But how transforms globalization the international legal order? This research programme provides a clearer framework to analyze this..

The European Society of International Law (ESIL) awarded its 2020 Book Prize to Daniel Peat, an Assistant Professor of Public International Law at the Grotius Centre for International Legal Studies at Leiden Law School. The ESIL Book Prize is awarded annually 'for an outstanding published work in the…

On 21 February 2019, Ruben Zandvliet defended his thesis 'Trade, Investment and Labour: Interactions in International Law'. The doctoral research was supervised by Prof. dr. N.J. Schrijver.

This PhD dissertation examines international responsibility for the crime of aggression from a public international law perspective. Under customary international law, as well as the amendments to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court adopted in the Review Conference in Kampala in 2010,…

The International Air Law Moot Court Competition is a unique opportunity for students seeking to gain experience in the development of arguments in the field of international law and international air law, while also establishing contacts around the world.

This book is the first to incorporate current academic literature and case law on European, transnational, and international media law into a comprehensive overview intended primarily for students.

The Advanced Master's specialization International Criminal Law at Leiden University examines international criminal law and international criminal procedure. Students will study the systemic environment of international criminal law and its link to related fields, such as international human rights…

On 9 April 2019, Yudan Tan defended her thesis 'The Rome Statute as Evidence of Customary International Law'. The doctoral research was supervised by Prof. dr. W.A. Schabas.

Maritime conflict management is the regulation of conflict in relation to the sea. It comprises conflict enforcement, conflict resolution and conflict avoidance. How did victims of maritime conflicts claim and obtain damages or demand compensation or reparation?

The world is full of wars, and no war is without its dead. What happens to the bodies of fatal casualties of armed conflict? The winner of the faculty Jongbloed Thesis Prize 2015 is Welmoet Wels (Public International Law). Her thesis Dead body management in armed conflict: paradoxes in trying to do…

In this policy brief, Dennis Broeders, Els De Busser and Patryk Pawlak discuss attribution of in cyberspace from three different perspectives: criminal law, international law and policy. Published together with EU Cyber Direct.

This summer school focuses on the emergence of Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity (SOGI) and intersex issues in different areas of international law, such as human rights law, refugee law and international criminal law. The fifth edition will take place in 2021.

On 19 May 2020, Xuechan Ma defended her thesis 'Moving towards Coexistence and Cooperation: The Spratly Islands and International Law'. The doctoral research was supervised by Prof. N.J. Schrijver.

On 8 July 2020, Andres Sarmiento Lamus defended his thesis 'The Proliferation of Dissenting Opinions in International Law'. The doctoral research was supervised by Prof. L.J. van den Herik and Prof. Y.A.A.S. Radi (UCLouvain).

Jens Iverson, Assistant Professor of International Law and a Researcher in the Jus Post Bellum Project, defended his Ph.D. dissertation on 21 September 2017.

Organized by the Grotius Centre for International Legal Studies, this programme enables students and professionals from all over the world to engage in discussions on the prospects and challenges of international criminal justice. The 18th edition of the International Criminal Law Summer School will…

PhD Defence

The Summer School on International Humanitarian Law is designed by the Grotius Centre Kalshoven-Gieskes Forum on International Humanitarian Law. The fifth edition will take place in 2021.

On Tuesday 17 October 2017 Alexandre Genest defended his PhD dissertation ‘Performance Requirement Prohibitions in International Investment Law’ as part of a double PhD programme at the Universities of Leiden and Ottawa. The Supervisors are Professors M.E. Koppenol-Laforce. F. Baetens (Universities…

Leiden University’s Master of Law in European and International Business Law (L.L.M.) examines how economic rulings of the European Union interact with business and trade on national, regional and global levels.

On 5 June 2018 Emile Beenakker defended her doctoral thesis ‘The implementation of international law in the national legal order: A legislative perspective’. The doctoral research was supervised by Professor W.J.M. Voermans.

Rutsel Martha, former Minister of Justice of the Dutch Antilles, former General Counsel of Interpol and alumnus of Universiteit Leiden, elaborated on the position of states and intergovernmental organizations (IGOs) in international financial law.