Research Themes

Policies and laws are developed by various actors – public, private, and mixed – and at various levels: local, regional, national, European, international, and transnational. This research line examines how this affects: 

• The powers of and relations among the various levels of authority and their dynamics,​
• Traditional principles of state organisation, democracy, fundamental rights protection, judicial protection, rule of law, the separation of powers, federalism, and the hierarchy of rules; and
• The position of individuals. 

​The core question is: How do we conceive constitutional principles and define legal relations in the face of the challenges that governance in a multi-level context entails?  

For federalism studies within this research line, Government and Law is a member of the International Association of Centers for Federal Studies.

This research line focuses on the way in which governing institutions act and interact with each other, as well as with individuals, social groups, companies, civil servants, and vulnerable groups such as (stateless) refugees. The principles of proper rule-making, good administration, and due process are regarded as guiding precepts in this matter. This is examined against the background of:

• Evolving views on public management, public-private partnerships, and the role of public institutions and agencies,
• Evolving insights on government relations with citizens and social groups, toward a more horizontal network structure; and
• Pressing challenges such as climate change, urbanisation, technological innovations, global health crises, social inequalities, and migration.

The core question is: How can we organise public decision-making in a way that secures the quality, timeliness, and legitimacy of law, administrative, and judicial decisions?  

This research line deals with legal challenges to governance in diverse societies in general, and divided societies in particular. Diversity in societies, composed of members with different national, cultural, religious, regional, and/or ethnic identities, poses challenges to governance related to:

• Access to the territory, legal residence, and citizenship, especially against the backdrop of growing international mobility and migration,​
• The notion of citizenship as the principal condition for full access to rights and benefits,​
• Demands for recognition of group identity, minority rights, and cultural rights; and
• Threats of secession and territorial integrity. 

The core question is: How does diversity impact on the state organisation and principles that govern the relations between public institutions, individuals, and groups?

This research line analyses legislative, executive, and judicial action that aims to increase sustainable behaviour by public and private actors (businesses and individuals). We assess the viability, efficiency, and effectiveness of these interventions, as well as their legitimacy and compliance with higher norms, and the institutional and procedural conditions in which these actions are embedded (e.g., participatory and co-creative procedures). We are particularly interested in the relationship and interplay between ecological sustainability and social sustainability.

The core question is: How can law that is aimed at achieving sustainability goals be designed in such a way that it is legitimate, effective, and fair?

The challenges taken up in the other research lines necessitate a re-thinking of fundamental principles that underpin the organisation of political systems. This becomes especially urgent in view of the rise of populism and authoritarianism. This research line, which is our transversal research line, feeds the others through a conceptual, theoretical, as well as empirical examination of:​

• Questions of legitimacy and related principles of democracy, legality, subsidiarity, and trust, and
• Questions of the limitation of power and related principles of the rule of law, the separation of powers, institutional balance, legal certainty, and fundamental rights.

The core question is: How do constitutional principles and practice relate to each other in a context of globalisation and upsurges of nationalism and populism?