Maastricht Law Messages Highlights 2014

Maastricht Law Messages 2014 | Faculty of Law

New: Research Guide Faculty of Law Johannes Keiler wins Modderman Prize 2014 July 2014 | Dr. Johannes Keiler (assistant professor in criminal law, Maastricht Faculty of Law) won the Modderman prize 2014 for his dissertation ‘Actus Reus and Participation in European Criminal law’. Keiler won the prize together with his former colleague and alum, Jeroen Blomsma (title of dissertation: Mens rea and defences in European criminal law). They worked together for five years in the same research group in the field of European criminal law.

The Modderman prize is the most prestigious prize for criminal law dissertations in the Netherlands. This biannual prize is awarded for outstanding academic quality and excellency and consists of a bronze token and an amount of money. The front of the token shows a portrait

of Prof. A.E.J. Modderman (1838-1885), professor of Criminal Law in Leiden (1871-1879) and Minister of Justice. The award ceremony will take place on the 28th of August at the University of Leiden.

The Prof. A.E.J. Modderman Stichting awards the Modderman prize every two years. The prize is awarded to dissertations in areas that are relevant to the criminal law (substantive criminal law; procedural criminal law; forensic psychology; criminology; comparative criminal law). The jury consists of professors of Criminal Law from four different universities. The prize is awarded to one or more dissertations on the basis of the criterion of ‘exceptional scholarly quality’.

Bastiaan Leeuw wins Horowitz Foundation Award 2013 June 2014 | Bastiaan won the Horowitz Foundation Award 2013 for his research on the effectiveness of interventions aimed at preventing ‘digital piracy’. Sixteen scholars (out of 364 applications) were selected to receive this grant for research in the social sciences.

Each year, the Horowitz Foundation (founded in 1998) approves approximately fifteen grants to policy-related research in all major areas of social sciences. Only doctoral students whose final dissertation project has been

approved are eligible to apply. Research grants are open to researchers in all social science disciplines provided that the projects deal with contemporary issues in the social sciences, particularly issues of policy relevance.

Conferences 2014

September 2014 | Monica Claes receives NWO grant for research “Enforcing the European Union fundamental values” In the 2014 round of the funding scheme “Reseach Talent” NWO (Dutch Organisation for Scientific Research) granted Monica Claes’ research proposal “Enforcing the European Union fundamental values”. It concerns a PhD position held by Matteo Bonelli. Of the 132 submitted proposals NWO granted 35.

NWO funds scientific research at Dutch universities and institutes by means of over a hundred different types of grants. Research Talent is a funding scheme which offers talented and ambitious young researchers a platform to pursue a scientific career and carry out highquality PhD research. In this round, 5.3 million was available.

December 2014 | Are you looking for indepth information about a legal subject?

Do you want to know more about legal research? Or do you want to interview an expert or invite an expert to your show?

Have a look at the new Research Guide of the Law Faculty and read about the research conducted at the faculty or find a legal expert. You can search the guide by name, area of expertise or key word.

This is an annual publication of the digital newsletter Maastricht Law Messages of the Maastricht University Faculty of Law. In this publication you will find a selection of news items of the past year.

Maastricht bachelor programmes first place in ‘Keuzegids Hoger Onderwijs’ again

In order to make the many research projects, conducted by the (international) staff of the Law Faculty available to anyone interested, the faculty has developed this new Research Guide. The guide is subject to constant further development as new research projects are added and the list of our experts will be expanded regularly.

November 2014

If you have any questions about the guide or about the research conducted at the faculty please do not hesitate to contact the Marketing & Communications office

Highly recommended is the European Law School in Maastricht in view of the good programme, the team of capable teachers and the highly valued skills trainings.

Following the recent successful results of the National Student Survey (Nationale Studenten Enquête; NSE) and the Elsevier Best Studies, our bachelor’s programmes European Law School and Tax Law took first place in the Guide to Higher Education (Keuzegids Hoger Onderwijs) again this year.

The bachelor Dutch Law took place 3/4 but was awarded a first place in the Elsevier Best Studies which was published earlier this year. We worked hard for this fantastic result and the faculty is enormously proud of it. According to the guide, the faculty excels in the field of teachers and skills trainings.

Dutch Law The bachelor’s programme in Dutch Law earned appreciation for its teachers, the

Enforcing the European Union fundamental values Prof. dr. Monica Claes, Maastricht University, Internationaal en Europees Recht Researcher: Mr. M. Bonelli This project will analyze the role of the EU in safeguarding the fundamental values on which the Union is founded, as recognized by the Treaty on the European Union: democracy, rule of law and human rights.

The recent constitutional crises in Hungary and Romania demonstrate the legal problems the EU faces to effectively intervene in what are considered internal affairs of a Member State. Adopting an innovative comprehensive approach, this research project will analyze and assess the enforcement mechanisms that are currently available, and discuss whether, and if so how, a more effective monitoring and enforcement system should be introduced.

Colophon Maastricht University Faculty of Law Editorial office: Esther Ronda Bouillonstraat 1-3, 6211 LH Maastricht P.O. Box 616, 6200 MD Maastricht T: +31 043 3883259 E: esther.ronda@maastrichtuniversity.nl

www.maastrichtuniversity.nl/law

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content of the programme and the skills education. “The teachers in Maastricht are highly valued for their excellent coaching”. Appreciation for scientific education is traditionally low for law programmes but Maastricht proves to be a positive exception. “Only Maastricht discerns itself, particularly because students appreciate the focus on conducting their own research”.

European Law School Students of the European Law School are very satisfied with the quality of their teachers and the content of their study programme. According to the guide: “Maastricht has the best programme with a strong content, good teachers and above all excellent skills education”.

Tax Law According to the guide, students in the bachelor’s programme in Tax Law also highly value their tutors. Moreover, the survival rate in the first year is high.

The guide says the following: “Best option seems to be Maastricht: an interesting programme, taught by professional teachers, combined with strong skills education. And the facilities are good too. Apparently, this all leads to a high survival rate in the first year.”

We are very proud of yet another good result and will continue to work hard to maintain it and to further improve.

All the results can be found on the website of the Keuzegids Hoger Onderwijs www.keuzegids.org

New weblog Faculty of Law: Maastricht Law News and Views

Honorary doctorate Prof. Paul Craig

May 2014 | Maastricht University Faculty of Law proudly presents a new weblog, Maastricht Law News and Views.

A team of thirty staff members will contribute to the blog and comment on national and international news.

Take a look at Maastricht News and Views and don’t miss a new blog entry. Easily done by following the blog on Facebook, Twitter, RSS or by subscribing to a weekly update via e-mail.

January 2014 | On Friday, 10 January, Prof.

Paul Craig was awarded an honorary doctorate. Paul Craig is Professor of English Law at St John’s College, Oxford University.

The titel of his lecture was: “A General Law on EU Administrative Procedure: The Emerging Issues”.

Jure Vidmar appointed August 2014 Graphic design: Emilio Perez | Print: Drukkerij Pietermans Photography: Joey Roberts and Sacha Ruland.

• 3e Pensioenseminar: De Pensioenschijf van vijf: er is MEER dan pensioen (27 January 2014) • Whose Culture is it? On Cultures of Authenticity and Ownership in Art and Cultural Heritage, Maastricht (23-24 March 2014) • EDLE Seminar on Law and Economics, Maastricht (27-28 March 2014) • Final DREAM Conference, Maastricht (3-4 April 2014) • Equal Rights and Accessible Environments: The UN CRPD and EU Disability Law and Policy (3 April 2014) • Kick-off Meeting MACIMIDE, Maastricht (4-5 April 2014) • Afscheidssymposium M. Kamminga, Maastricht (11 April 2014) • Afscheidssymposium F. Grünfeld, Maastricht (23 May 2014) • State Aid and Public Procurement in the European Union Jean Monnet Module (27 May 2014) • Conference on Self-Determination, Public International Law, Faculty of Law, Maastricht (16 October 2014) • Legal Aspects of Land Rights and the Use of Land in Asia, Africa, and Europe, Maastricht (19-21 October 2014) • Proceduralisation of EU law through the backdoor (20-21 October 2014) • 5th Annual Theo van Boven Lecture by Mrs. Hina Jilani, Maastricht University (12 November 2014) • 19th Annual Ius Commune Conference, Edinburgh (27-28 November 2014) • Een-tweetjes in de strafrechtspleging; van deals met criminelen tot stilzwijgende afspraken tussen procespartijen (11 December 2014) • Nederlandse Vereniging van Strafrechtadvocaten Congres Rechterlijke Ongehoorzaamheid, Crowne Plaza, Maastricht (12-13 December 2014)

Monica Claes receives NWO grant for research

Maastricht Law Messages

Faculty of Law | 2014

Dr Jure Vidmar has been appointed as professor of Public International Law at Maastricht University. Jure Vidmar will officially join the Department of International and European Law as of 1 September 2014.

Dr Jure Vidmar is currently the holder of a Leverhulme Early Career Fellowship in the Faculty of Law, University of Oxford, where he is a Research Fellow of St John’s College. He is also an Extraordinary Lecturer at the Centre for Human Rights, Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria, South Africa.

At this moment, he is a Human Rights Visiting Fellow at Harvard Law School.

Previously, he was an Anglo-German Fellow at the Institute of European and Comparative Law, University of Oxford, Associate of Queen’s College (Oxford) and a post-doctoral researcher at the

Amsterdam Center for International Law, University of Amsterdam.

Jure Vidmar is a Slovene national and has studied Law and International Relations in Ljubljana and Nottingham. He holds a PhD in Politics from Salzburg and a PhD in Law from Nottingham.

He has published extensively on various issues of international law, including state formation, hierarchy in international law and international human rights law. He has recently taken over also as the new editor-in-chief of the Hague Yearbook of International Law.

Maastricht Law Messages 2014 | Faculty of Law

Cutting-edge research at the Law Faculty Focus areas of research and teaching activities are: the changing role of experts and expert knowledge, public participation, and technological mediation. By working across the traditional boundaries that separate academic and professional disciplines and institutions, the centre will be instrumental in building capacity to strengthen existing collaborations and open up new ventures for research. The Centre will be launched during the international conference ‘Assembling Value: The Changing Roles of Experts and Expertise in Art and Heritage Worlds’ which will take place on 22-23 March 2015 in Maastricht.

Maastricht Centre for Research on Europe In December 2014 the Central Board of Maastricht University approved of the creation of this new inter-faculty centre. This centre is a joint initiative emanating from the Faculty of Law (FL) (Professors Claes, De Witte, Heringa and Vos) and the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences (FASoS) (Professors Blom, Conzelmann, Christiansen, Neuhold, Patel and Vanhoonacker) It comprises more than 60 researchers in the fields of European law, governance, and history, covering a large number of sub-fields within those disciplines. The Centre brings together the vast expertise on European integration that exists within the two faculties, with a view to facilitating new and innovative research in specific topical areas. It links three existing institutes within the Faculties: the Maastricht Centre for European Governance (FASoS), the Maastricht Centre for European Law (FL), and the Montesquieu Institute Maastricht (FL/FASoS).

MACCH The joint research centre MACCH is an initiative of FASoS in collaboration with the UM Faculty of Law (FL), the School of Business and Economics (SBE), the Faculty of Humanities and Sciences and the Stichting Restauratie Atelier Limburg (SRAL). With its unique combination of legal, historical, philosophical, economic and practical expertise, MACCH aims to meet the demands of the increasingly multi-layered and complex challenges facing the fields of arts and heritage today.

ITEM The new institute in the field of transnational and Euregional cross-border cooperation and mobility (ITEM) which will open its doors in 2015, will merge expertise in the field of cross-border cooperation in the Euregion in the fields of cross-border labour, pension, taxes, social security, international mobility and service provision, entrepreneurship and unrestricted enterprising, police collaboration, and the fight against crime. The new centre aims to remove the obstacles preventing international and Euregional cooperation and mobility. It will also serve as a hub for research, knowledge exchange, and training activities that promote cross-border mobility and cooperation. One of the institute’s goals is to merge existing initiatives in the field of cross-border collaboration and promote information exchange.

ITEM is a joint initiative of Maastricht University, the Dutch Expertise and Innovation Centre for Social Impact and Demographic Stagnation (NEIMED, part of Hogeschool Zuyd), the Province of Limburg, the Maas-Rhine Euregion (EMR), and the Municipality of Maastricht. ITEM is also backed by various national and international bodies, such as the BENELUX, CBS, the regions of North RhineWestphalia and Aachen, the border information points, and the universities of Hasselt, Liege, Aachen, and Cologne.

The institute is being set up by Maastricht University’s Faculty of Law. Within ITEM, researchers from various UM faculties, including FASOS, FHS, the School of Governance/UNU Merit, and the

Moot court competitions; successful as always!

June - November 2014

On Friday, 7 November the first Dutch Business Mediation Competition for students took place. Six, well prepared teams from Leiden, Maastricht, Amsterdam and Tilburg competed.

The students were coached by experienced mediators who acted as mediator and juror.

Without exception, these professionals were impressed by the students’ qualities, skills and motivation. After a challenging session against Leiden, Maastricht took first place.

Our 2nd year team ranked 3rd out of 66 worldwide teams in the university’s first participation in the International Commercial Mediation Competition held by the International Chamber of Commerce in Paris. The team consisted of Jasmine Styles, Olav de Wit, Jurgen van Heertum and Kate O’Reilly (coached by Catalina Goanta and Jehan Edriouch).

After long and intensive preparations for months and a convincing victory in the regional finals in Portugal, the team won the finals of the European Law Moot Court Competition in Luxemburg on 28 March 2014. The team, consisting of students Eva van Ooij, Pauline Melin, Myriam Douo and Vilma Imahaki, was coached by Sarah Schoenmaekers, Alexander Hoogenboom and Maja Brkan. This year, the subject of the moot court was the recognition of gay marriage and adoption by people of the same gender in the European Union. Teams of our faculty have won this moot court competition before. This year, we celebrated the sixth victory in this prestigious European Law Moot Court Competition. No other university ever won this often! From 10-14 March a team from Maastricht University participated in the regional round of the ELSA WTO law moot court competition in Prague. The team, composed of Ines Khiari Millan and Sophia Paulini and coached

by Iveta Alexovicova and Denise Prevost performed well and came fifth out of 17 teams, thus just missing proceeding to the semi- finals.

The team won three prizes, those for Best Written Submission for the Complainant, Best Written Submission for the Respondent and Best Written Submissions Overall.

School of Business and Economics - more specifically the Research Centre for Education and the Labour Market (ROA) - will collaborate with researchers from NEIMED. This collaboration highlights the interdisciplinary nature of ITEM. Movare: the Healthy Primary School of the Future The Healthy Primary School of the Future is a programme that aims to raise healthier children in the Parkstad region. Many of this region’s youth grow up in disadvantaged areas and suffer from a range of health problems.

The Healthy Primary School of the Future is an initiative that will offer primary school students a structured daily programme of activities that centre on healthy food, sports, relaxation, culture, and education. Scientific research is currently being conducted to determine the effects of this programme.

Within the framework of Maastricht University

Prof. Gerard-René de Groot special guest speaker at 200th anniversary of High Council of Nobility

Medical Centre’s Healthy Living Profile, which focuses on promoting a healthy quality of life, the parties are working towards various campus initiatives, namely, Health (Maastricht Health Campus); Business, Law & Culture (Maastricht City Centre and Parkstad); and Agro/Food, Logistics/Health (Greenport).

The scientific research associated with the programme is interdisciplinary in nature.

UM project participants include the Faculty of Health, Medicine and Life Sciences; the Faculty of Psychology and Neuroscience; the Faculty of Business and Economics; and the Faculty of Law. The Maastricht Academic Hospital is also an active participant.

Researchers at the Faculty of Law are investigating children’s right to healthcare and education, with special attention to the responsibilities and (conflicting) interests of parents, schools, municipal governments, social workers, and other stakeholders.

Make titles inheritable through the female line

June 2014 | Prof. Gerard-René de Groot was a special guest speaker at the 200 th anniversary of the High Council of Nobility last Monday, 23 June. In the presence of King Willem-Alexander, ministers Plasterk and Opstelten and many other high-ranking guests, he spoke in favor of the emancipation of female nobility. According to the Groot, it is time to amend nobiliary law and make titles inheritable through the female line.

Amendment to nobiliary law rejected If a noble woman marries a man without a title, their children will not inherit titles. This is only possible through the male line. De Groot: “In 1994 an attempt was made to amend the nobiliary law and allow children to inherit a title from the mother’s line, but without success.

The legislature, however, agreed on two amendments - children born out of wedlock and adopted children are henceforth allowed to inherit titles - but only through the male line.

It should be possible in our country to inherit titles through your mother, and not only through your father.”

Universal principle In the Groot’s view, it is a matter of principle.

“This is just part of modern society. At the time, the Dutch House of Representatives feared that agreeing on making titles inheritable through the female line would result in too many nobles. To me, this is an incomprehensible position: what does it matter how many people have a title? It is about applying the universal principle of equality to nobiliary law to keep up with the times.”

Read the interview with Prof. de Groot in the UM web magazine

A Farewell...

Saskia Klosse appointed as a Crown member of the SER August 2014 | The Dutch cabinet (Ministerraad) has decided to nominate four new Crown members for appointment. One of them is UM Professor Saskia Klosse. The other nominated members are Nicolette van Gestel, Fieke van der Lecq and Ed Nijpels. Klosse (1957) is a professor of social law at Maastricht University.

Her main area of research relates to labour and social security law, from both a national and an international perspective. It is focused on issues associated with unemployment, illness, incapacity for work, working conditions, prevention and reintegration promotion, and cross-border employment. In addition, she is concerned with the relationship between liability and insurance, and European coordination in the field of social security. She was a member of the Bakker Committee, which published the report ‘A future that works’ in 2008. Klosse participates in European research networks and multidisciplinary collaborations.

The Social and Economic Council of the Netherlands (SER) advises the Dutch cabinet and parliament about the structure of socialeconomic policy. The SER also performs administrative and supervisory functions. In the SER, independent Crown members, employers and employees all work together. The SER is tripartite: together, the three groups reflect social and economic relations in the Netherlands.

The council has 33 members: 11 representing employers, 11 representing unions and 11 Crown members. The Crown members represent general interests. They are independent experts appointed by the Crown (by royal decree) on the recommendation of the cabinet.

Maastricht University Law College (UMLC) The Maastricht University Law College (UMLC) is an extra-curricular programme for students who have the potential to excel.

Realising your potential to excel!

Maastricht University Law College November 2014 | The UMLC offers its students an open and collaborative learning environment, in which students and staff work closely together and participate in a multitude of academic and extracurricular activities. The UMLC programmes offers a broader approach to studying the law and has three main focus areas: • Understanding the law in its societal context, which requires looking at legal problems from perspectives that come from outside the law • Understanding how the law works in practice by discussing legal problems with a variety of people who work with the law in their professional lives • Developing an understanding of legal research methods

The UMLC constitutes a three-year programme of 36 ECTS that students follow in addition to the regular bachelor programme in Dutch Law, Fiscal Law or European Law School. It comprises a core programme and two tracks: Law in Practice and Legal Research. It is supported by a mentor and portfolio programme that tracks learning progress. The Maastricht University Law College is for students who demonstrate a potential to excel at their studies and are keen to explore how they can develop their academic and personal skills and talents to become tomorrow’s leaders in for instance research, law, business, government and policy.

For more information please visit the UMLC website.

April 2014 | Seminar Prof. Menno Kamminga An activist is someone who wants to change things. A scholar is someone who wants to know how things work. Or is this a false dichotomy?

What do activists and scholars have in common?

This was the theme of Menno Kamminga’s farewell seminar with speakers from civil society and academia.

May 2014 | Symposium Prof. Fred Grünfeld On Friday, 23 May, a farewell symposium was organised for Prof. Fred Grünfeld. Fred Grünfeld (1949) is associate professor of International Relations and of the Law of International Organizations at the University College Maastricht and at the Department of International and European Law of the Faculty of Law of the University of Maastricht and at the Maastricht Centre for Human Rights. He studied Political Science at the VU University in Amsterdam. His current research is on comparative genocide studies (Rwanda, Srebrenica and Darfur) and in particular the failures of third parties to prevent the genocide.

June 2014 | Lecture Prof.mr. Gerrit van Maanen In 1989 he was appointed professor of Private Law at Maastricht University’s Department of Private Law. From 1997 to 2000 he worked as a part-time professor at the Open University of the Netherlands.

He held an administrative position as chair of the Education Committee at Maastricht University’s Faculty of Law, where he was responsible for the radical reform of the propaedeutic and graduate phases. From 1998 to 2002 he served as director of the Dutch Law programme. From September 2002 to October 2005 he worked as professor and director of the Academic Institute and was responsible for ensuring the quality of all programmes. He also served as supervisor/adviser for several PhD candidates both within and outside the faculty.

Academic ceremonies M. Mahounon; 2 April 2014, Le Rôle de la CEDEAO Dans la Crise Ivoirienne; Prof. M. Faure M. Cisneros; 2 April 2014, The Role of EU State Aid Law in Promoting a Pro-Innovation Policy - an Approach from the Perspective of Public-Private Partnerships for Research and Development; Prof. M. Faure and dr. N. Philipsen M. Scholten; 3 April 2014, The Political Accountability of Independent Agencies in the European Union and the United States; Prof. L. Verhey M. Krabbe; 10 April 2014, Excusable Evil: the Analysis of Complete Defences in International Criminal Law; Prof. A. Klip and em. Prof. G. de Jonge J. Krommendijk; 3 July 2014, The Domestic Impact and Effectiveness of the Process of State Reporting under UN Human Rights Treaties in the Netherlands, New Zealand and Finland. Paper-pushing or policy prompting?; Prof.dr. F. Coomans en Prof.dr. F. Grünfeld F. Pitrone; 17 February 2014; Environmental Taxation a legal perspective J. Sellin; 19 June 2014, Access to Medicines. The Interface between Patents and Human Rights. Does one size fit all?; Prof. dr. A.P.M. Coomans en Prof. dr. A.W.J. Kamperman Sanders Mirjam de Mol; 2 October 2014, De Directe Werking van de Grondrechten van de Europese Unie; Prof.dr. H. Schneider; Prof.mr. B. de Witte Charles Ibikounle; 15 October 2014, Le Droit de Refus Dans l’Exécution du Contrat de Travail; Prof.dr. M. Faure Dalindyebo Shabalala; 15 October 2014, lntellectual Property, Technology Transfer in the Context of International Climate Change: Negotiations for a Post-Kyoto Protocol Framework; Prof.dr. Anselm Kamperman Sanders Anna Beckers; 16 October 2014, Taking Corporate Codes Seriously: Towards Private Law Enforcement of Voluntary Corporate Social Responsibility Codes; Prof.dr.dr. h.c.mult. Gunther Teubner (HiiL chair 2009/2010); dr. Nicole Kornet Gustavo Arosemena; 17 October 2014, Rights, Scarcity & Justice. An Analytical Inquiry into the Adjudication of the Welfare Aspects of Human Rights; Prof.dr. Fons Coomans Frits Udo; 19 November 2014, Bestuurdersaansprakelijkheid bij de ondernemende stichting; Prof. mr. C.A. Schwarz, mr. dr. J.J.A. Hamers Tiiu Albin; 10 December 2014, International Aspects of the Common Consolidated Corporate Tax Base; Prof. dr. H.T.P.M. van denk Hurk, Prof. dr. R.G. Prokisch Maurice en Raymon Canisius; 10 December 2014, Uitkeringen aan Aandeelhouders in het Nieuwe BV-recht; Besluitvorming, Vertegenwoordiging en Vereenzelviging; Prof. mr. C.A. Schwarz en mr. dr. J.J.A. Hamers Pauline Kruiniger; 17 December 2014, Islamic Divorces in Europe. Bridging the Gap between European and Islamic Legal Orders; Prof.mr. R. de Groot; dr. S. Rutten Lotte Meurkens; 19 December 2014, Punitive Damages: The Civil Remedy in American Law, Lessons, and Caveats for Continental Europe; Prof. mr. G. van Maanen; Prof.mr. T. Hartlief Kaiser Chaudhary; 22 December 2014, Pakistani Marriages and the Private International Laws of Germany and England; Prof.mr. G.R. de Groot, dr. S.W.E. Rutten

FRUITFUL MEETING

Alumni Advisory Board Faculty of Law April 2014 | On Friday, 11 April the second meeting of the Alumni Advisory Board took place. Seven alumni of our faculty representing various occupational groups gathered in order to discuss the faculty’s future. How do our alumni cope on the labour market? What are the experiences in the day-to-day practice?

How should the faculty present itself and can the advisory board come up with new ideas?

Those were the topics that were subject to ample discussion. In the board room of the faculty, dean Hildegard Schneider opened the meeting and Ria Wolleswinkel looked back on the first meeting, a year ago. That alone, resulted in more than sufficient food for thought. And the following presentation by Chris Backes about the faculty’s future plans got the discussion going even more. Lawyers, policy advisors, staff members of the European Committee and business looked at the faculty’s plans from a totally different angle. New ideas were tabled and the future plans were considered from a critical point of view.

In principle, the Alumni Advisory Board meets once a year. The faculty highly values the professional point of view of this particular group of alumni on the offered study programmes and will adopt the advice resulting from these meetings as much as possible.