Starting 1 January 2016 Maartje van der Woude is appointed as full professor of Sociology of Law at Leiden University.

The Master’s specialisation in Sociology of Policy in Practice teaches you to think along with organisations to help them respond to the challenges they are facing in our global and quickly changing societies.

Does the nature and extent of political communication networks, measured through the frequency and multiplexity of information exchange ties, play a critical role in the reconstitution and maintenance of the Chinese Empire?

Within the Sociology of Policy in Practice specialisation you will develop a research project on prevailing policy problems.

What is the role of local authorities and communities in shaping how inter-Schengen borders are understood and dealt with?

Philosophy of law is concerned with the the foundations of law.

The research within eLaw is mainly (but not exclusively) connected to the Faculty of Law research program Effective Protection of Fundamental Rights in a Pluralist World. The central research question of this program is: What opportunities and threats flow from the existence of institutional and normative…

On Friday 24 March, Prof. Amanda Perry-Kessaris (Kent Law School) will deliver the monthly Leiden Socio-Legal Lecture.

Legal education initiative of the Leiden University, the University of Groningen and Universitas Indonesia.

On 18 May 2011, Dr. Ben Knapen, Minister for European Affairs and International Cooperation, delivered the annual Van Vollenhoven Lecture on “Rule of Law and Development”.

This master’s programme introduces the student to philosophical issues arising at the intersection of law, politics, and policy. This master’s programme is meant for students who wish to combine a master’s in Law, Political Science, Public Administration, or an adjacent discipline with a master’s in…

To what extent are there differences between countries in and outside the European Union and the Schengen area in the level of crimmigration, the merger between migration control and crime control, and to what extent can these differences be explained by the way in which state and non-state actors in…

The increase in the European Union's executive powers in the areas of economic and financial governance has thrown into sharp relief the challenges of EU law in constituting, framing, and constraining the decision-making processes and political choices that have hitherto supported European integration.…

The Institute of Criminal Law and Criminology is committed to international cooperation and exchange.

The Role of Law in Libya’s National Reconciliation (RoLLNaR) was a research project that ran from 2017 to 2020. It identified and assessed the role of law – both actual and potential, enabling and constraining – with regard to major challenges of reconciliation in Libya. The project was led by Dr. Suliman…

What role(s) do border officials play in the enforcement and management of border control and border mobilities and how do these roles relate to the personal, organisational and larger societal context within which these officials operate?

The central question in this study is: ‘What can the Netherlands learn from the way in which these countries have organized law enforcement and the rule of law in their overseas territories?’

Cultural anthropology development sociology, visual methods, policy in practice, global ethnography.

International organisations that represent collaborations between States are becoming increasingly more powerful, and they have an increasing impact on our daily lives. For example, the European Court of Human Rights in Strasburg established that minors have a right to legal aid immediately following…

Cultural Anthropology and Development Sociology at Leiden University studies the everyday practices of individuals and groups around the world in relation to the complex global challenges of diversity, sustainability, and digitalisation.

Social and Behavioural Sciences, Cultural Anthropology and Development Sociology

On Wednesday 22 July, Professor Maartje van der Woude will hold a webinar for Nusantara University (Indonesia). Her lecture is entitled ‘Governing Through Crises: Civil Liberties Under Pressure’.

Starting this academic year (2016-2017) Maartje van der Woude, Professor of Sociology of Law at the Van Vollenhoven Institute will organize the Leiden Socio-Legal Series (LSLS).

The Anthropology and Sociology network brings together researchers of LIAS and LUCSoR working from an anthropological and sociological perspective and researchers of the Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences.

Ruling Overseas: Connected Practices of Governance of Law

Cultural Anthropology and Development Sociology

Anthropology of Law in Muslim Sudan analyses the hybridity of law systems and the plurality of legal practices in rural and urban contexts of contemporary Sudan, shedding light on the complex relation between Islam and society.

Is the legitimacy of law and governance of multilevel jurisdictions diminishing?” “What is the significance of (diminishing) legitimacy for the effectiveness of law?” These kinds of questions about the legitimacy of the supranational formation of law, its application, and the policy and governance based…

On 25 Februarry 2021 Hart Bloomsbury brings out a monograph by Frans-Willem Korsten: Arts as an Interface of Law and Justice: Affirmation, Disturbance, Disruption. Its working title was 'Annoyance' but that did not sell. A sign in itself; most struggles for justice have been considered as annoying.

We are very happy to welcome you to spend a semester or year studying with us at the Institute of Cultural Anthropology/Development Sociology (CA-DS). Here you will find practical information on studying CA-DS in Leiden as an exchange student.

As of today, Maartje van der Woude (Professor of Sociology of Law, Van Vollenhoven Institute for Law, Governance & Society) has become a member of the advisory board for Oxford Law’s research platform Border Criminologies.

On 26 June 2019, Lisa Louwerse defended her thesis 'The EU’s Conceptualisation of the Rule of Law in its External Relations: Case Studies on Development Cooperation and Enlargement'. The doctoral research was supervised by Prof. C.A.P. Hillion.

Vulnerability and the associated levels of social resilience is what fascinates the researchers at the Institute of Cultural Anthropology and Development Sociology. What links a Japanese fisherman after the tsunami at Fukushima with a Ghanaian goldminer in an increasingly industrialised work environment?…

“Winner CHOICE Outstanding Academic Title Award 2016” A Cultural History

An international comparative study of the Netherlands, Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, the United Kingdom and the United States.

The Faculty of Law has five institutes:

The Van Vollenhoven Institute for Law, Governance, and Development and the Grotius Centre for International Legal Studies organised the Van Vollenhoven Lecture 2013.

On 23 June 2020, Santy Kouwagam defended her PhD-thesis 'How lawyers win land conflicts for corporations: Legal Strategy and its influence on the Rule of Law in Indonesia'. The doctoral research was supervised by Prof. A.W. Bedner and Prof. C.E. von Benda-Beckmann.

Study Information