VUB Contextual Research in Law

Abstract: The cosmopolitan distinctiveness of José Rodrigues Miguéis' (1901-1980) work in Portuguese literature invites new perspectives on his writing. Lisbon, Brussels, and New York are objective stages in a body of work that sought to highlight the “cases of life” as a journalist of the accidental, particular manifestations of human suffering. Foreign to the esprit de corps of literary movements, sympathetic to the Herculean fortune of the disadvantaged, Miguéis was able to find the geographical and political conditions for an art liberated from national convention Contact: Joao dot Tiago dot Freitas dot Mendes at vub dot be

International Conference: Contested Seas: War, Commerce, and the Making of the Law of the Sea (c. 1400–1800) 19-20 November 2026, Ostend, Belgium Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB), Campus Ostend / Flanders Marine Institute (VLIZ) Conveners : Stefano Cattelan & Frederik Dhondt (Vrije Universiteit Brussel – Faculty of Law and Criminology, Research Group CORE) Keynote speakers :  Surabhi Ranganathan (Lauterpacht Centre, University of Cambridge) Indravati Félicité (Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg) Concept and Rationale: The early modern law of the sea did not emerge as a coherent or pacified body of rules. Rather, it took shape as a fragmented and deeply contested legal regime. It was forged through recurrent warfare, commercial rivalry, and persistent struggles over jurisdiction and enforcement at sea. The pelagic arena was characterised by o verlapping jurisdictions, uneven enforcement, and profound asymmetries of power (Benton, 2010). The freedom of the s...

Les journées de la Société d’histoire du droit et des institutions des pays flamands, picards et wallons se tiendront cette année à Versailles les 15 et 16 mai 2026, à l’invitation de Madame Catherine Lecomte, professeur émérite à l’université de Versailles-Saint Quentin et présidente honoraire de la société, sur le thème « Dirigeants et dirigés ». Si la notion de gouvernance a été, ces dernières années, souvent questionnée dans ses structures, ses moyens et ses fins, celle de gouvernant et plus largement de dirigeant mérite à nouveau une particulière attention. L’actualité contemporaine montre en effet qu’en matière de gouvernance publique, les structures institutionnelles ne suffisent pas à déterminer à elles seules les politiques qui demeurent influencées par la personnalité des dirigeants. Renouant avec une problématique classique de l’Histoire des idées politiques, un tel sujet propose une réflexion sur les gouvernements à travers la personne de ses dirigeants, s...

  (image source ( ACFHAB ) The Conference of Historical and Archaeological Societies of Belgium, which held its most recent assembly in Tournai in August 2021 and started its cycle in 1889, will convene at the Palace of the Academies in Brussels from 20 to 23 August 2026 , with the support of the French-Speaking Community of Belgium, the Académie Royale de Belgique, urban.brussels, and the City of Brussels. The section for institutional and legal history (presided by Prof. em. Jean-Marie Cauchies/ARB; vice-presidents: dr. Marc Ronvaux, Prof. Frederik Dhondt ; secretary: dr. Nicolas Simon) welcomes proposals by 6 April 2026 .  Any topic in institutional and legal history may be presented, in French, Dutch or German . The call is also open to recent graduates who have completed their MA thesis. Abstracts ought to count 20 lines . Those interested in presenting can contact frederik dot dhondt at vub dot be. A website for abstract submission will be operative in January 2026.

(image: the Peace of Nijmegen, Henri Gascard; source: Wikimedia Commons ) Following the editions of 2012 (Tilburg), 2014 (VUB), 2016 (Maastricht), 2018 (Liège), 2023 (Leuven), the Belgian-Dutch Legal History Colloquium will be hosted in the Duchy of Guelders. Contributions in Dutch, French and English are welcome. Abstract: Op donderdag 27 en vrijdag 28 november 2025 vindt de komende editie van de Nederlands-Belgische Rechtshistorische Dagen plaats. De afdeling Rechtsgeschiedenis van de Radboud Universiteit kijkt er alvast naar uit u in Nijmegen te mogen verwelkomen. Wij verwelkomen alle rechtshistorici met een band met de lage landen door de inhoud van hun onderzoek, hun aanstelling en/of taalkundige en academische banden. Wij nodigen u daarnaast van harte uit om te spreken over uw lopende of recente rechtshistorische onderzoek. De presentaties duren maximaal 20 minuten waardoor er ruimte is voor vragen en discussie. U kunt zich aanmelden via deze link en ook daar kenbaar maken of...

  (Source: Wikimedia Commons) Le 20 octobre 2025 , Raphaël Cahen (chercheur en histoire du droit à la JLU Giessen, professeur invité à la Vrije Universiteit Brussel) , Pierre Allorant (professeur d’histoire du droit et des institutions, université d’Orléans) et Walter Badier, (maître de conférences en histoire contemporaine, université d’Orléans) organisent une journée d'étude sur  Édouard Laboulaye et la galaxie libérale . Édouard Laboulaye (1811-1883) a tenu une place considérable dans la vie intellectuelle, scientifique, juridique et politique française du XIXe siècle. Outre la biographie intellectuelle que lui a consacrée en 1989 André Dauteribes, deux journées d’études lui ont été dédiées plus récemment : la première, au Collège de France, à l’occasion du bicentenaire de sa naissance (Revue internationale de droit comparé, 63/3, 2011) ; la seconde à l’université de Cergy-Pontoise en décembre 2016 sur sa pensée juridique et politique (Revue française d’Histoire des idées ...

    International Days of the Society for Legal and Institutional History of Flanders, Picardy and Wallonia Tilburg (The Netherlands), 30-31 May 2025  (image: Tilburg skyline; source:  Wikimedia Commons ) The Society for Legal and Institutional History of Flanders, Picardy and Wallonia   holds its annual "International days" 2022  on 30 and 31 May 2025 in Tilburg (in The Netherlands)   The theme of the conference is:  « l’Extraterritorialite et le Droit  » (“Extraterritoriality and Law”)   The law as it stands, both public and private, has strong ties to a territory. For example, territory is fundamental in the constitutional order of France, Belgium and the Netherlands. In private law, this attachment to land is equally present. Conflicts in property law are judged by the lex situs. The constitutio Antoniniana (D.1.5.17) did the same for Roman citizenship. National law, comparative law and legal history are based and strongly focus...

The Worlds of Pre-Modern Neutrality (ca. 1400-1800):   Norms, Institutions and Practices  (image source: Bing image generator) Supported by FWO Junior Fundamental Research Project G016122N: In the Shadow of the Great Powers. Neutrality and the Law of the Sea in the Long Eighteenth Century (2024-2026) Conveners: dr. Stefano Cattelan & Prof. dr. Frederik Dhondt -  Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Research Group CORE Venue : Nottebohm Room, Hendrik Conscience Heritage Library - Hendrik Conscienceplein 4, 2000 Antwerp (Belgium) Date: 8-9 May 2025 Concept To ensure their security in a world dominated by competing Great Powers, states have the choice between an alliance or a neutral position. If we consider the world as governed by brute force, neutrality (the choice not to participate in a conflict between two or more other polities) would merely be a  factual condition , dependent on the big players’ goodwill. Even today the ongoing war in Ukraine and the geopoliti...