Following the success of previous editions, GRILI is pleased to announce the fifth edition of the International Order and Justice Lecture Series, taking place in the 2026–27 academic year at Ghent University's Faculty of Law and Criminolgy.
The series will bring together seven undisputed ‘heavyweights’ in the broader international legal domain for a series of public lectures and closed, interactive sessions with doctoral and post-doctoral researchers. The public lectures will address a wide array of contemporary issues, ranging from the international legal regime governing deep seabed mining, the prospects of criminalizing ‘ecocide’, the question of the strengths and shortcomings of the laws of war, or the EU’s commitment to international trade law. Particular attention is devoted to the interaction between law and politics, and the evolution of international law’s place in the international community. During the closed interactive sessions, one or more (Post-)doctoral researchers will have the opportunity present their research, and receive first-hand feedback from an established legal scholar in their domain. Other doctoral researchers will be able to engage in the ensuing debate.
The lecture series is organized under the auspices of the Ghent Rolin-Jaequemyns In-ternational Law Institute (GRILI), in partnership with the Vrije Universiteit Brussel, the Université Libre de Bruxelles, and the University of Antwerp. It is made possible through the financial support of the Doctoral School of Arts, Humanities and Law at Ghent University.
Practical information:
Participation in the Specialist Course is open to all doctoral and post-doctoral researchers, whether from Ghent University or external institutions. Other persons wishing to participate in the interactive sessions should inquire with the organizers. Reading materials will be distributed to enrolled candidates, prior to the lectures. Those who enroll and participate in all lectures can obtain an ECTS certificate from the Ghent University Doctoral Schools administration. (Post-)doctoral researchers wishing to present during one of the interactive sessions are invited to submit a short proposal (abstract of no more than 300 words) to the organizers (tom.ruys@ugent.be) and specify the session during which they would like to do so. Presentations need not coincide with the topic of the concomitant public lectures, but should be related to the broader expertise of the external speakers.
On 8 October 2026, Professor Louis Kotzé will give a public lecture as part of the 2026-27 International Order & Justice Lecture Series at Ghent University (Doctoral schools, Volume V). The topic of the lecture and further practical details will be communicated closer to the event. Professor Kotzé will also take part in a closed seminar with (post-)doctoral researchers.
Professor Kotzé is Chair of the Law Group and Professor of Law at Wageningen University. His research encompasses five interrelated themes: international environmental law; human rights and the environment; the Sustainable Development Goals; law and governance for the Anthropocene; and earth system law.
On 10 November 2026, Professor Cedric Ryngaert will give a public lecture as part of the 2026-27 International Order & Justice Lecture Series at Ghent University (Doctoral schools, Volume V). The title of the lecture is 'The International Criminalization of Ecocide: Prospects and Pitfalls'. Further practical details will be communicated closer to the event. Professor Ryngaert will also take part in a closed seminar with (post-)doctoral researchers.
Professor Ryngaert is a Professor of International Law at Utrecht University. His research interests relate to the law of jurisdiction, immunities, international criminal law, non-state actors, the role of international law before domestic courts, sanctions, international responsibility, and international organizations. Among other publications, he authored Jurisdiction in International Law (OUP 2015, 2nd ed), Selfless Intervention: The Exercise of Jurisdiction in the Common Interest (OUP 2020), and, with Tom Ruys, Secondary Sanctions (British Yb Int’l L 2020). Cedric Ryngaert chairs the Dutch Advisory Council on International Law (CAVV), which advises the Dutch Foreign Ministry.
On 20 November 2026, Professor Andrew Clapham will give a public lecture as part of the 2026-27 International Order & Justice Lecture Series at Ghent University (Doctoral schools, Volume V). The title of the lecture is 'What’s Wrong with the Law of War?'. Further practical details will be communicated closer to the event. Professor Clapham will also take part in a closed seminar with (post-)doctoral researchers.
Professor Clapham is is Professor of International Law at the Graduate Institute. He has published extensively in the areas of human rights and the laws of war. His publications include: Human Rights Obligations of Non-State Actors (OUP, 2006), Brierly’s Law of Nations: An Introduction to the Role of International Law in International Relations (7th edition) (OUP, 2012), Oxford Handbook of International Law in Armed Conflict, co-edited with Paola Gaeta (OUP, 2014), and The 1949 Geneva Conventions: A Commentary, co-edited with Paola Gaeta and Marco Sassoli (OUP, 2015, awarded the ASIL Certificate of Merit) and War (OUP, 2021).
On 8 December 2026, Professor Liesbeth Lijnzaad will give a public lecture as part of the 2026-27 International Order & Justice Lecture Series at Ghent University (Doctoral schools, Volume V). The topic of the lecture and further practical details will be communicated closer to the event. Professor Lijnzaad will also take part in a closed seminar with (post-)doctoral researchers.
Professor Lijnzaad is a Judge at the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea and Professor of International Law at the University of Maastricht. Her research interests include: general international law, international humanitarian law, law of the sea, sources of international law (customary law, law of treaties), resources law (oil and gas, deep seabed mining), boundary limitation, as well as feminism and international law.
On 16 March 2027, Professor Philippa Webb will give a public lecture as part of the 2026-27 International Order & Justice Lecture Series at Ghent University (Doctoral schools, Volume V). The title of the lecture is 'The ICJ as a Human Rights Body'. Further practical details will be communicated closer to the event. Professor Webb will also take part in a closed seminar with (post-)doctoral researchers.
Professor Webb is a Professor of International Law at the Blavatnik School of Government, University of Oxford. Her research interests span all of Public International Law, with particular expertise in State and diplomatic immunities, international dispute settlement, human rights, international organizations law, international humanitarian law and international criminal law. Her publications include: Freedom of Speech in International Law (2024, chapters on insulting speech and false speech), The Right to a Fair Trial in International Law (2021, with Amal Clooney) Oppenheim’s International Law: United Nations (2017, with Dame Rosalyn Higgins GBE KC, D Akande, S Sivakumaran and J Sloan), The Law of State Immunity (2015, with Lady Fox KC), and International Judicial Integration and Fragmentation (2012, 2015).
On 23 March 2027, Professor Alina Miron will give a public lecture as part of the 2026-27 International Order & Justice Lecture Series at Ghent University (Doctoral schools, Volume V). The title of the lecture is 'Interventions: a New Form of Participation to ICJ Proceedings'. Further practical details will be communicated closer to the event. Professor Miron will also take part in a closed seminar with (post-)doctoral researchers.
Professor Miron is a Professor of International Law at the University of Angers. Her research covers areas like proceedings before international courts and tribunals, the law of international organizations and the application of international law by domestic judges. Most recently, she has been focusing on law of the sea issues. Among her latest publications: she is a co-author with Alain Pellet and Mathias Forteau of the 9th edition of Droit international public (LGDJ, 2022) and with Christine Chinkin, of the commentaries to Articles 62 and 63 in Statute of the International Court of Justice: A commentary, edited by Andreas Zimmermann and Christian J. Tams. She is also the leading editor of the recently published Atlas des espaces maritimes de la France (Pedone, 2022).
On 30 April 2027, Professor Isabelle Van Damme will give a public lecture as part of the 2026-27 International Order & Justice Lecture Series at Ghent University (Doctoral schools, Volume V). The title of the lecture is 'Reassessing the European Union's Commitment to International Law in the Rules-Based Trading Order'. Further practical details will be communicated closer to the event. Professor Van Damme will also take part in a closed seminar with (post-)doctoral researchers.
Professor Van Damme is a Professor of International Economic Law at the World Trade Institute, University of Bern. Isabelle’s current research focuses on the administration and enforcement of EU sanctions legislation and procedural law of WTO and FTA dispute settlement mechanisms. Her main publications include Treaty Interpretation by the WTO Appellate Body (OUP), EU Foreign Subsidies Regulation (Concurrences, co-authored), Commentary on the WTO Anti-Dumping Agreement (CUP, co-authored), and the first and second editions of The Oxford Handbook of International Trade Law (OUP, co-edited).