Leo Damen, Professor Emeritus of Administrative Law, Turns 80: “I’ll keep writing at my own pace”

On October 23, the Department of Constitutional Law, Administrative Law, and Public Administration in Groningen will honor Professor Emeritus Leo Damen during the event “In the Service of Administrative Law: Leo Damen Turns 80!” “I was lucky that my work was my hobby—and vice versa.”

_{Text: Esther van der Meer}

The event announcement reads: “The essence of administrative law: those in power serve the public.” Could you explain that?

“That’s very beautifully put by the organizers. Since the introduction of the General Administrative Law Act in the 1990s, citizens—partly due to the influence of the ideology of individualization—have been expected to fend for themselves as active, independent members of society.

But administrative law is complicated and is becoming more so by the day, and the people who have the most contact with the government are the most vulnerable in society. They depend on the energy allowance, welfare, or other benefits. And they often fail to navigate that complicated maze of rules. Just look at the underutilization of all kinds of benefits: people don’t even dare to start filling out the forms. That’s where the idea of service comes in: you have to help people according to their abilities.”

You are now 80 and have devoted a large part of your life to administrative law: what is the current state of affairs?

“The intellectual world of scholars exploring how administrative law can and should be improved continues to evolve steadily, but it is difficult for the government to meet all the requirements across all these expanding areas. Every day there’s something new the government has to address.

The pressure to expand government intervention is constant. Meanwhile, the UWV is grappling with 50,000 backlogged medical evaluations, and there are many complaints and lawsuits regarding delays in decision-making. Since the benefits scandal, all sorts of improvement initiatives have been launched, and there are plans to assess proportionality and equality more systematically. Moreover, everyone talks a lot about the “human touch.” But that does cost more time and money, and people aren’t willing to pay the price. That’s not a cheerful picture.”

What is the solution?

“On paper, it’s clear where we need to go, but implementation is stalling because the money isn’t there. If you can’t muster enough legal expertise, people suffer as a result. So either more government funding must be allocated, or certain things simply can’t be done anymore. It’s a matter of choices. ‘Not everything is possible,’ as Johan Remkes once said.”

With all these developments in administrative law, do you regret being retired?

“It’s actually an advantage to have stopped working. I now have plenty of time for research. I’m continuing to write at my own pace. I’ve been lucky that my work was my hobby—and vice versa.”

In addition to research, you’ve also always taught extensively. What do you think students remember from your lectures?

“I’m afraid few people have fond memories of them. Those large lecture halls in Paddepoel never appealed to me. Once, I woke up drenched in sweat from a nightmare in which the entire flower auction in Aalsmeer was filled with students who could press a button to bomb me.

What I did enjoy were the seminars, with groups of about twenty people. That’s when you have interaction. At one point, we had an honors group; we’d meet once every few weeks to dissect a case study. That leads to a very different kind of discussion than when you have to cover the required material.

I remember a case involving the Government Information Act, in which the Public Prosecutor’s Office had provided the KNVB with information about soccer hooligans so that the KNVB could suspend them. According to the law—which has since been amended—that information was then considered public, so I requested it. They tried to block it for a long time, but in the end, I succeeded. The students thought that was great—the professor taking the matter to court.

I’ve also devoted a lot of time to textbooks, such as *Leerboek Bestuursrecht 1 and 2*. I always try to write from the reader’s perspective. That actually applies to all my writings, and I’ve published extensively. What’s the point of writing if you don’t put yourself in the reader’s shoes?”

What advice would you give to today’s administrative law practitioners?

“Maintain your legal expertise—or better yet, improve it. Stay up to date on case law, study new developments, and take courses as often as you can. I often hear people say, ‘I don’t have time for that.’ But if you don’t have sufficient legal expertise in-house, you’ll cause all sorts of problems that could have been avoided. Standing still is going backward, especially in this regard. Isn’t it awful when you consistently have to deliver subpar work?

So, my final piece of advice: if you enjoy your work, you’ll make time for it, and the quality will inevitably improve.”