Group of people studying together at a table in the Faculty of Law

Faculty of Law

The Faculty of Law at Maastricht University is a top-quality provider of challenging and rewarding Dutch and European legal education at bachelor’s, master’s and PhD-level. A true pioneer in small-scale teaching and teaching of skills aimed at a broad range of future legal professionals.
 
The clear focus in research on European and international aspects of the law, Law and tech, and the empirical setting in which the law operates, provides an exceptionally stimulating environment for both students and staff. The Faculty greatly values its open, diverse and inclusive community that makes it a pleasant and rewarding place to work and study. 

The UM Faculty of Law offers a wide range of bachelor's and master's programmes. Would you like to know more about our programmes? Download the brochure for more information on the courses, career perspectives and admission requirements of our programmes.

News

Publication of the Report by the Legal Expert Group (LEG) on the Right to Demonstrate at Universities

A group of legal experts from the Faculty of Law has provided advice on the exercise of the right to demonstrate at Maastricht University (UM).
hand holding documents

Paula Lozada named Face of Science

As one of the Faces of Science, Paula will communicate her research and her work as a scientist to society in various ways.
Portrait of Paula Lozada

Donna Yates Appointed UNESCO Chair in Cultural Heritage and Emerging Crime

Donna Yates (Associate Professor in the Criminal Law and Criminology department) has been appointed UNESCO Chair in Cultural Heritage and Emerging Crime.
Portrait of Donna Yates

Appointment of Frank Nellen as Professor of Value Added Taxes and Supply Chain Levies

The Executive Board has appointed Dr Frank Nellen as Professor of Value Added Taxes and Supply Chain Levies as of 1 March 2026. He succeeds Ad van Doesum, who was appointed Justice in the Tax Chamber of the Dutch Supreme Court as of 1 January 2026.
Picture of Frank Nellen by Suzan Alberts

Law schools Zuyd and Maastricht University strengthen cooperation

Unique in the Netherlands: some credits from higher professional education in law count directly towards the pre-master's degree.
Dries Lodewijks (directeur financiële-, management- en rechtenopleidingen Zuyd), Saskia Brand-Gruwel (bestuurslid Zuyd) en Jan Smits (decaan Faculteit der Rechtsgeleerdheid, UM). Staand op de achtergrond (vlnr): Koen Savrij Droste (opleidingsmanager HBO-Rechten Zuyd en programmadirecteur Samenwerking UM – Zuyd), Bart Paumen (adviseur Strategie, Zuyd), Eric van de Luijtgaarden (lector en bijzonder hoogleraar Preventive Law bij, respectievelijk, Zuyd en de UM) en Brahim Ait Mellouk (directeur Faculteit der Re

Faculty in Focus

Our faculty is always buzzing with ideas, discussions, and events! Across the past period, our students, researchers, and staff have been involved in an impressive range of activities, from helping solve cold cases to organising events on children’s rights, and from exploring legal questions in popular culture to rethinking how we teach law.

This series brings together some of the most remarkable and inspiring stories. Whether in the classroom or outside the faculty's walls — one thing is clear: our community continues to explore, innovate, and make an impact.

 Read our Faculty in Focus series

Faculty in Focus logo

Agenda / events

Blogs

AI-Generated Representations of Architectural Works and Limits of Architectural Copyright

  • Law

Copyright lawsuits in the US brought by groups of writers, artists, and musicians against AI developers have mainly focused on the AI training stage rather than the output stage. One of the reasons for this focus is that claimants often struggle to demonstrate that AI outputs are copies of original works. Architecture is different: where general-purpose AI models like GhatGPT reproduce copyright-protected architectural designs, the similarity is remarkable and therefore it becomes easier to demonstrate copying. While we have not seen lawsuits from architects yet, they are likely to be unsuccessful nevertheless. Why?

an architect's working table with drawings

Developing Agnostic Network AI Models for Financial Crime Detection

  • Law

Can we trust AI with our financial integrity? With financial crime, the stakes aren't just monetary—they involve the rule of law and the health of our democracy. But in the COMCRIM AI PhD project, we are facing a unique challenge: How do you train a machine to find a needle in a haystack when that 'needle' is constantly changing its position? Trying to answer this question, we provide an overview of how AI can support the detection of financial crimes that threaten the rule of law and democracy.

risk meter

Does the ban on designer drugs in the Netherlands work?

  • Law

On Thursday, January 22, 2026, the Research and Data Centre (WODC) and the Trimbos Institute jointly organised the annual symposium of the National Drug Monitor (NDM). During the meeting, the latest figures and trends were presented: who uses drugs, and what developments are visible? What stood out? The rise of the new psychoactive substance (NPS) 3MMC, best known by the name MIAUW.

Uitwisseling van drugs voor geld

Sorting out competence related conflicts of physicians in specialty training

  • Law

Nobody likes a conflict, especially not about being good enough to belong to a certain profession. All the same, nobody wants to receive medical treatment from a doctor, without sufficient professional performance. So, after graduation, a medical specialist should be competent to provide the level of care sufficient to the norms of the specialty, regardless of any disputes or obstacles during training.

Cover of Judith Godschalkx-Dekker's thesis

The EU-Australia Trade Deal: Trade, Trust and Investment Protection

  • Law

On 24 March, a long-negotiated trade deal between the European Union and Australia finally became a reality. This is a welcome development in light of the current geopolitical and economic uncertainties. The agreement follows a series of recently concluded EU trade deals with important partners such as Indonesia and India, reflecting the EU’s broader strategy to expand its economic presence in key markets and to help European businesses diversify their trade relationships. Given the scale of the economies involved, these agreements are expected to have a significant economic impact.

World map focussed on Australia

Interactive Campus Tour

Watch the interactive video and take a tour of our faculty. Our student Niklas will tell you all about the faculty's facilities, study areas, historical buildings and teaching spaces and more. Choose your own path and find out whether studying at Maastricht University is right for you.

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