Latest blog articles

  • Dean’s blog episode 3: from Blue Monday to the Dies Natalis

    Many things happened at the Faculty in the past fortnight. Friday 26 January, we celebrated the 42nd Dies Natalis of the UM. The one thing I always like about this celebration is that it is enormously varied compared to other universities’ anniversaries.

    scriptieprijzen uitreiking FdR Maastricht  UM 2018
  • The Dean’s Blog episode 1: the first two weeks

    Some colleagues asked me what it is that a dean does all day and why he cannot simply do his fair share of teaching. This question is fully justified and this blog will try to give some insight into work and life of a dean (that, by the way, I am also curious about myself).

    Dean's blog Jan Smits_Faculty of Law Maastricht
  • Absurd claim

    On 9 April 2011 a gunman killed 6 people in a shopping mall in the Dutch town of Alphen aan den Rijn. A group of victims now claims damages from the gunman’s parents, claiming that they should have prevented their son from this horrendous act. The claim will fail: on the facts of the case, there is...

    vreemd_mlr_blogs_header
  • Leftist science?

    How diverse is Dutch science? According to a majority in the Second Chamber, perhaps not quite diverse. Last week, the Chamber adopted a motion that calls upon the government to clarify whether Dutch university staff is made up too much homogeneous. (Dutch only)

    Science left-wing_social-media
  • What is Private Law for?

    Albert Camus famously wrote that ‘life is the sum of all your choices.’ Private lawyers could not agree more. At the core of private law lies the idea that individuals are allowed to know better than the State.

    Pieter Bruegel_the_elder-_the_corn_harvest_august