Dr. Gert-Jan Boon is Assistant Professor of Company and Insolvency law at the Department of Company and Financial Law at the Leiden Law School (Leiden University, the Netherlands). He conducts research in the field of national and international restructuring and insolvency law. Gert-Jan has a background in both business studies, holding a master degree in Marketing (Free University Amsterdam), and in law, with a master degree in Corporate Law (Leiden University). He has gained practical experience in both the legal practice as well as the commercial research practice. At Leiden University he teaches courses in (international) corporate and insolvency law in the bachelor, master and advanced master programmes. Upon defending his dissertation on the Debtor in Possession, Gert-Jan was nominated by Global Restructuring Review as international insolvency academic of the year (2025). He publishes in Dutch and international journals. In addition, he has (co-)authored and (co-)edited several books, including: ‘Debtors in Possession: A Comparative Legal Study of the Role of Debtors in US, EU and Dutch Restructuring and Insolvency Law’; ‘Cross-Border Insolvency: International Texts and Commentary’ (with Bob Wessels) and ‘Implementation of the European Preventive Restructuring Directive’. Furthermore, he has participated in various research projects for and/or funded by Dutch and international research and professional institutions, including the European Commission, the European Law Institute, INSOL Europe and the International Insolvency Institute. He is the secretary/treasurer of the European think tank Conference on European Restructuring and Insolvency Law (CERIL) and the Foundation Bob Wessels Insolvency Law Collection (BWILC).

More information about Gert-Jan Boon

Dr. Gert-Jan Boon is Assistant Professor of Company and Insolvency law at the Department of Company and Financial Law at the Leiden Law School (Leiden University, the Netherlands). He conducts research in the field of national and international restructuring and insolvency law. Gert-Jan has a background in both business studies, holding a master degree in Marketing (Free University Amsterdam), and in law, with a master degree in Corporate Law (Leiden University). He has gained practical experience in both the legal practice as well as the commercial research practice. At Leiden University he teaches courses in (international) corporate and insolvency law in the bachelor, master and advanced master programmes.

Upon defending his dissertation on the Debtor in Possession, Gert-Jan was nominated by Global Restructuring Review as international insolvency academic of the year (2025). He publishes in Dutch and international journals. In addition, he has (co-)authored and (co-)edited several books, including: ‘Debtors in Possession: A Comparative Legal Study of the Role of Debtors in US, EU and Dutch Restructuring and Insolvency Law’; ‘Cross-Border Insolvency: International Texts and Commentary’ (with Bob Wessels) and ‘Implementation of the European Preventive Restructuring Directive’. Furthermore, he has participated in various research projects for and/or funded by Dutch and international research and professional institutions, including the European Commission, the European Law Institute, INSOL Europe and the International Insolvency Institute. He is the secretary/treasurer of the European think tank Conference on European Restructuring and Insolvency Law (CERIL) and the Foundation Bob Wessels Insolvency Law Collection (BWILC).

Gert-Jan is also involved in various international research projects, including:

• Several CERIL projects, including a review of the European Commission’s proposal for the EU Inc. Regulation, evaluation of the European Insolvency Regulation, European harmonisation of certain aspects of insolvency law, and COVID-19 and insolvency legislation.
• Judicial Co-Operation supporting Economic Recovery in Europe (JCOERE) project, 2019-2020 (a project aiming to enhance judicial co-operation under the European Insolvency Regulation (848/2015) supporting preventive restructuring (rescue) processes for European businesses);
• European Law Institute (ELI), Rescue of Business in Insolvency Law, 2020 (a study on designing (elements of) a legal a coherent and functional framework for business rescue in Europe. It resulted in the ELI Business Rescue Report, comprising around 115 recommendations, which was adapted unanimously by ELI in 2017 and published in 2020 by OUP);
• EU Court-to-Court Insolvency Cooperation Principles, 2015 (developing Principles and Guidelines for cooperation by European judges in cross-border insolvency cases, this project was co-financed by the European Union and the International Insolvency Institute);
• INSOL Europe, Statement of Principles and Best Practices for Insolvency Office Holders in Europe, 2014 (developing Principles and Best Practices as a European code of conduct for Insolvency Practitioners, a project initiated by INSOL Europe);
• INSOL Europe, Guidelines for Out-of-Court Restructuring and Turnaround Professionals, 2015 (developing a code of conduct for restructuring and turnaround professionals in Europe, a project initiated by INSOL Europe).

Gert-Jan is a member of the Business & Law Research Network (BLRN). He is also a fellow of the European Law Institute (ELI), and on behalf of ELI, observer at the Working Group V (insolvency) meetings of the United Nations Committee on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) as an observer. Gert-Jan was chair of the Younger Academics Network of Insolvency Law (YANIL) and a board member of the INSOL Europe Academic Forum (IEAF).

Publications

Activities