Today we are celebrating the university’s 98th birthday and I hope that we will draw a large crowd, not only because the aula hall otherwise looks empty, but specifically because we have an interesting line-up of speakers. This year’s focus is on Erasmus School of Law (320 staff and 4,500 students). Erasmus School of Law is renowned for blending law, economics and sociology in its education and research. The European Doctorate in Law and Economics, an excellence programme sponsored by the European Commission under the Erasmus Mundus scheme, is a perfect example of how research conducted at the Erasmus School of Law crosses the traditional boundaries of law.

The research at Erasmus School of Law is highly recognized both nationally and internationally for its quality. In the latest Dutch Research Assessment Excercise, the programme ‘Behavioural Approaches to Contract and Tort’ was rated ‘excellent’, whereby the reviewers have praised the way in which this programme ambitiously pushes the boundaries of legal research into the multidisciplinary and international legal arena. This year’s Dies programme will provide a glimpse of this cutting-edge research.

The programme will include the posthumous conferment of an honorary doctorate on the late Lord Rodger of Earlsferry. More information can be found on the homepage of our website www.eur.nl.
I hope you can join us.