Latest blog articles

  • My message is, however, that next to the main lines of law’s contents, law students should learn about the ways in which law affects society and its participants. In this connection, they should study selected topics from sociology, but also – and that is the main message here – the cognitive...

  • Instead of protecting the victims of Burundi, the current government shields those who are responsible. The problem with such impunity is that it de facto “legalizes” violence as no accountability is created.

  • Every endeavour is achieved as the result of teamwork, and librarians are fundamental members in our team when researching in law. Librarians provide able hands and without them effective research would be an almost impossible mission, especially in the Internet era. Above all, librarians hold the...

  • While there are no indications that the number of serious violations of integrity in law enforcement has increased over the past five years, the violations are getting more serious. Investigating authorities such as the Dutch National Police Internal Investigations Department are faced with more...

  • The wishes of the Spanish government and those of the Catalan people are diametrically opposed: 90% of voters in the referendum were for independence - but keep in mind also that only about half of the Catalan people voted.

  • Where in 2010, about 40 per cent of the population downloaded music, the figure is now a quarter, partly because of the arrival of Spotify. The best strategy to avoid illegal downloading, according to Bastiaan Leeuw, is a mixture of punishment and temptation.

  • Comparative legal historians do not undertake pure legal history or pure comparative law. The product of their research experience is more than the mere addition of the two building blocks.

  • A little bit of provocation sharpens the mind. Let me therefore start with a provocative thesis: Most lawyers have no idea what law is.

  • When should the State intervene on ownership to guarantee the protection of the environment? When is social responsibility triggered when dealing with ownership? There is a need to predict the impact that the Ecological Function paradigm will have.

  • Is there such a thing as ‘European private law’? In my opinion there is not, just as there is no Dutch, French, English, or Chinese private law. Let me explain. Legal rules, including rules of private law, have many characteristics.