Maastricht Centre for Law & Jurisprudence

Research Institute

Faculty of Law

The Maastricht Centre for Law & Jurisprudence (MCLJ) promotes excellence in research in the areas of legal philosophy, legal theory, (international) legal history and the intersection of these fields by holding colloquia, workshops, conferences, and other academic exchanges with a view to serving the scholarly community and society at large.

Upcoming MCLJ events

On 20-21 June 2026 Monica Garcia-Salmones will be organizing an author workshop on "The Common
Good and the
Common Goods".

On 1 July 2026, Manon Moerman will defend her PhD dissertation entitled ‘Normative Hybridity in Private Partnerships. An Exploration into the Rules of Conduct for Business Partners in Early Modern Amsterdam (1601 – 1791)'. More information to follow

Upcoming activities of MCLJ members

Antonia Waltermann will give a talk on ‘Reasoning or Simulation?’ at the Lisbon summer school of Legal Reasoning and AI on 19 June, 2026.
https://lisbonpubliclaw.pt/en/eventos/summer-school26-on-legal-reasoning-artificial-intelligence/

Between 27 July and 01 August 2026, Antonia Waltermann will participate in the workshop ‘How Does Law Exist and Hold Validity?’. https://www.villavigoni.eu/en/event/how-does-law-exist-and-hold-validity/

Past events and activities of MCLJ members

Roland Pierik will present a paper entitled: Should the ECtHR change its course? A legal-philosophical perspective at “Revisiting the ECHR: A Closer Look at Calls for Change”, Faculty of Law, Leuven University, 22.05.2026. https://www.law.kuleuven.be/apps/activiteiten/calendar/revisiting-the-echr-a-closer-look-at-calls-for-change-6669

Monica Garcia-Salmoes presented a paper entitled ‘Nature and Law’ at the Departmental Seminars, Department of the History and Philosophy of Science, University of Cambridge, on the 14 May, https://www.hps.cam.ac.uk/news-events/seminars-reading-groups/departmental

On 12 May 2026 the Law, Authority Normativity and authority research stream at the Maastricht Centre for Law & Jurisprudence (MCLJ) organized a meeting to discuss the implications of the recent CJEU judgment on Hungary's controversial "child protection" laws, titled: Commission v Hungary: a reappraisal of European values?

Antonia Waltermann travelled to Oslo (Norway) as a fellow of the research project ‘Authentic Reasoning: Rethinking Legal Doctrine in the Era of Artificial Agents’ funded by the Centre for Advanced Study at the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters (CAS) and participated in the first workshop of the project between May 11 – 14, 2026.
https://cas-nor.no/yc-project/authentic-reasoning

Lukasz Dziedzic presented the paper "Legal representation of natural entities" at the Jurisprudence and Legal Philosophy seminar series at Tilburg Law School on Thursday, 30 April from 10.45-12.30, in room M534 (Montesquieu building, 5th floor).

Research

MCLJ studies law by adopting a multidisciplinary and (methodologically) pluralistic approach. Moving beyond traditional doctrinal legal research, we start from the presumption that a correct understanding of (positive) law, its meaning and its institutions, requires comprehension of the different contexts where law operates. These are the contingent historical circumstances where the legal system emerged, how positive law is embedded in broader normative-philosophical and societal debates on customary law, constitutionalism, democracy, human rights and the rule of law or the functioning of law (or not) as a coherent system of norms.

MCLJ's research mainly takes place in the following research streams:

1.    Law beyond the human
2.    Law, normativity and, authority
3.    Law and mind
4.    Global markets, nature and the common good

News

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.

MCLJ Annual Conference 2026: “Law in a changing world”

Legal ordering is changing, both globally and domestically. Some talk about a post-American order, others about a new order of Great Powers such as China, Russia or the United States. A power-based concept of law is being put forward, one more characteristic of other centuries. Ecological and techno

Populism, the principle of primacy and the values of the EU

As part of the Globalisation & Law Network Seminar Series, MCLJ and GLAWnet jointly organise a seminar by Giuseppe Martinico.

Symposium VWR-VSR: Vulnerability and the Law – Multidisciplinary Perspectives

On 14 November 2025, the symposium "Vulnerability and the Law: Multidisciplinary Perspectives" will take place in Maastricht.

A New Place for Jurisprudence: Launching the Maastricht Centre of Law & Jurisprudence

After being active for almost a year, the Maastricht Centre of Law & Jurisprudence ( MCLJ ) officially launched on 23 January 2025

Events

Maastricht Foundations of Law Colloquia

16 Jun

Globalisation & Law Network Seminar Series 2025 - 2026

1 Sep

31 Dec

Jean Monnet EU Migration Law and Governance Lecture Series

31 Dec

1 Jun

Blogs

Law in a Changing World – the 2026 Annual Conference of the Maastricht Centre for Law & Jurisprudence

On 27 and 28 January 2026, the Maastricht Centre for Law & Jurisprudence (MCLJ) organised its second annual conference with a theme inspired by these issues: Law in a Changing World. The conference’s purpose was to tackle key aspects of this changing reality, investigate its causes, and study novel legal methods and moral and political goals.

A New Place for Jurisprudence: Launching the Maastricht Centre of Law & Jurisprudence

The Maastricht Centre for Law & Jurisprudence (MCLJ), a new research institute created at the Maastricht Law Faculty in spring 2024, held its launching event on 23 January 2025. The MCLJ brings together, facilitates, and supports research in jurisprudence – widely conceived. Research conducted at the Centre is multidisciplinary with a focus on philosophy of law, legal history, and legal theory.