Headlines
At a time when cyberattacks are increasingly used as a geopolitical instrument, Evgeni Moyakine has been awarded an Open Competition XS grant from NWO. With this funding, he will investigate how states can be held legally responsible for cyberattacks carried out via hackers and intermediary actors.
Millions of products are still being destroyed every year: customer returns, unsold stock, and items that are cheaper to replace than to repair. Europe is eager to counter such wasteful practices but cannot do so without adequate laws and regulations. Charlotte Pavillon discusses the legal complexities surrounding the circular economy.
Luuk de Boer has been awarded an NWO Veni grant within the NWO Talent Programme. With this grant, he will conduct research into a striking and internationally growing phenomenon: sovereign citizens who reject existing legal systems and develop their own alternative rules and ‘laws’.
De overheid kan met één besluit een woning sluiten om drugshandel tegen te gaan. Maar hoe effectief en rechtvaardig is die maatregel eigenlijk? In de nieuwste aflevering van podcast Recht op Nieuws gaat presentator Jan Brouwer in gesprek met Els Schipaanboord, Michel Vols en Michelle Bruijn over de werking en gevolgen van de Wet Damocles.
Climate change is claiming an increasing number of victims in Europe. This is evident from the latest Lancet Countdown Europe, in which 64 researchers from 42 different countries map out the consequences of climate change for European public health. The results of this third edition are published today in the journal Lancet Public Health.
Alette Smeulers’ meticulous research into war criminals and genocidaires has brought her firmly into the spotlight. Her book Angstaanjagend normaal (which translates as ‘Terrifyingly Normal’) features a typology of these offenders. She wrote the book explicitly as a warning to all of us. The thing that worries her most is the commonly held idea that you could not be a perpetrator yourself.
At the annual conference of the British and Irish Law, Education and Technology Association in Aberystwyth (15–17 April 2026), Sophia Salziger was awarded the BILETA-EJLT Prize. She received the prize for her research on when individuals are entitled to compensation for privacy violations under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).
During the launch of her book Dat maak ik zelf wel uit (That's for me to decide) on 20 April, Brigit Toebes (Hattem, 1969) was awarded a Royal Decoration. Toebes is Professor of Health Law in a Global Context at the UG. She received the insignia belonging to the Royal Decoration in the category of Officer of the Order of Orange-Nassau from Deputy Mayor Mirjam Wijnja of the Municipality of Groningen.
Assistant Professor Benedikt Schmitz has won the European Law Faculties Association thesis prize (proxime accessit) for his thesis “Rethinking the Consumer Conflict Rule: Article 6(2) of the Rome I Regulation and Party Autonomy in Light of Principles, Efficiency, and Harmonisation”.
Digitalisation is subjecting legal institutions to a profound process of transformation. What are the opportunities and risks? The symposium Digitalisation of Justice on 29 May in Groningen aims to develop proposals for solutions to these questions.
In recent years, mayors in the Netherlands have closed an average of between one and five premises per year in connection with drug trafficking. This is according to research carried out by the Faculty of Law at the University of Groningen.
De Publieksacademie voor de Rechtspraak staat op 16 april in het teken van femicide. Iedere acht dagen wordt er in Nederland een vrouw vermoord. In veel gevallen was de partner of ex-partner de dader en ging er een geschiedenis van huiselijk geweld aan vooraf. Hoe herken je rode vlaggen? En wat kunnen we doen om vrouwen beter te beschermen?
Sophia Salziger about her doctoral research on the possibility of claiming non-material damages when your personal data is leaked, as happened recently after the Odido hack.
Vaccination, bicycle helmets, tobacco, alcohol, healthy eating, abortion, preconception care and an open-door policy in care homes: all hot issues in the Netherlands where the balance between health and freedom comes into play. Professor of Health Law Brigit Toebes has written a book on the subject: 'Dat bepaal ik zelf wel - reflecties op gezondheid, vrijheid en recht', that will be published by Boom on 1 April.
This year’s Education Festival kicked off by announcing and honouring the winners of the Best Practice in Teaching & Learning Award.The aim of this award is to highlight innovative teaching initiatives that engage students and align with the University of Groningen’s educational themes. All eleven faculties nominate a course and the lecturer(s) responsible. The winners were presented with the Best Practice Award by Rector Jacquelien Scherpen.
It is a topic that is more topical and sensitive than ever: the future of the freedom to demonstrate. Presenter Jan Brouwer discusses this topic with Associate Professor Berend Roorda, a specialist in the right to demonstrate, and PhD candidate Noor Swart in the latest episode of the Recht podcast
The ban on begging in the Netherlands was removed from the Criminal Code in 2000, but begging is still not permitted in many places. In fact, measures in General Local Regulations have made the rules even stricter than before. This is evident from research conducted by lawyers Els Schipaanboord, Stefan van Tongeren and Michel Vols from the Faculty of Law.
Abuses in prostitution and human trafficking must be combated rigorously. But what is the best way to do so? The approach varies from country to country: from legalization and regulation to restricting sex work by reducing supply or demand. For her doctoral research, Lisa Hoekman compares legislation and its effects in countries such as Belgium, the Netherlands, Sweden, France, and Germany. She concludes: ‘Sex workers who choose the profession voluntarily are often the victim.’
On 12 March, at the age of 66, NOS journalist Dik Verkuil will obtain his PhD from the Faculty of Law with a thesis on the biography of the unapproachable VVD politician Frits Bolkestein (1933-2025). It was about time. 'I have always felt like a failed academic.'
The Netherlands faces the challenge of building 100,000 homes annually, while the availability of drinking water is under pressure. The Faculty of Law at the University of Groningen is participating in a large-scale innovation project that is expected to accelerate new construction projects by approximately 6 to 18 months.
How can the law help combat femicide? These and other questions will be at the heart of International Women’s Week at the Faculty of Law, from 6 to 12 March 2026. Come along, join the discussion, and be inspired!
On January 26, 2026, nine European countries—from the Netherlands to Norway—signed a declaration to strengthen collaboration on offshore wind energy. Their goal? 300 gigawatts of capacity, a project that could reshape energy prices for millions of European citizens.
Valérie van 't Lam has been professor of Environmental Law at the University of Groningen since 1 August 2025. She will deliver her inaugural lecture on 13 February. 'Environmental law is about everything you see outside, and that intrigues me.'
Het ronselen van jongeren voor criminele karweitjes via sociale media is een landelijk probleem. Hoe staat het ervoor in het Noorden? De Publieksacademie voor de Rechtspraak staat op 19 februari 2026 in het teken van jeugdcriminaliteit.
To show that Byzantine law is not a curiosity but a vibrant and highly relevant field of research, Daphne Penna wrote an accessible introduction entitled Byzantine Law: The Law of the Eastern Roman Empire.
As a 12-year-old, assistant professor Ester Post spent months hunched over the newspapers in the library of her hometown, Urk. It was the autumn of 1987, and the media were completely fixated on the kidnapping and — as became apparent much later — the murder of Ahold CEO Gerrit Jan Heijn. The young Post followed every twist and turn. ‘I was fascinated by the perpetrator — and by the attitude of Gerrit Jan Heijn’s wife during the case. When it was all over, her story was beautifully narrated in a book entitled ‘De Verzoening’ (Reconciliation).’
Why are unhealthy products often cheaper, widely available and highly visible in the Netherlands, while healthy food is often more expensive or less attractively presented? The new PREMIER-CVD consortium is investigating why policies to change this keep getting stuck and how we can break through the barriers.
In the latest episode of the Recht op Nieuws podcast, presenter Jan Brouwer analyses the state of international law with specialists André de Hoogh and Antenor Hallo de Wolf. The central question: is the world still governed by law or by power?
Op woensdag 14 januari 2026 wordt - vanaf 10.00 uur - bij de Ondernemingskamer van het gerechtshof Amsterdam het enquêteverzoek behandeld. De zitting is livestream te volgen. Loes Lennarts heeft tijdens de zitting via Whatsapp contact met verslaggever Aïda Brands van de NOS. Zij is in de zittingszaal aanwezig.
From 1 December 2025 to 1 December 2026, the Groningen Centre for Health Law, the STeP Group and the TLS department welcomed two visiting professors with expertise in global health law: Tsung-Ling Lee (Taipei Medical University) and Benjamin Mason Meier (University of North Carolina).
Sietske Dijkstra will be appointed professor by special appointment of Judiciary and the Rule of Law at the Faculty of Law on 1 February 2026. The chair has been established by the District Court of Northern Netherlands.
Mr. Juliette van der Jagt has been appointed as professor by special appointment of Local Government Law (Oppenheim Chair) at the Faculty of Law, effective January 1, 2026.