Navigating the future of law together

Save the date! The first conference of the network of applied sciences professors and their partners on People-centred law and practice: “Navigating the future of law together”.

Can the government realise the promise of the rule of law for citizens? How can (HBO) lawyers and other professionals become more people-centred and solution-oriented to advance social cohesion and transitions to sustainability? What are the most important developments within the people-centred justice movement in the Netherlands and internationally that should guide future (HBO) lawyers, other professionals and educators?

The research group Multilevel Regulation, the network of lectors from different applied sciences universities together with partners from the professional field and educational programs (called the platform on “People-centred Law and Practice”) organizes its first conference to address those questions under the theme “Navigating the future of law together.”

The conference will take place at The Hague University of Applied Sciences, on March 7, 2025 between 9.00 and 14.00. The conference will feature professionals, educators, students, and other participants interested in the people-centred justice movement.

Join us!

If you are a student, professional, or educator interested in joining our network and the conference, please register here. 

Important: this conference is not only for legal professionals. The questions on people-centred law and practice are complex and concern different fields of professional practice and educational fields, so everyone is welcome. We particularly invite professionals and educators working on the following topics: the rule of law, democratic participation, transformative governance, circular economy, sustainability, digital transformations and education (and others).

What we want to achieve?

During the conference, we will map and discuss the current practical developments in people-centred justice, law, and the accompanying fields. After the conference, we will write a report that will serve as a basis for our network's strategic practice-oriented research agenda. Next year, we will organise two more conferences to co-create this agenda further.

RegiorganSIA funds our network. 

Programme

9.00 - 9.25
Registration & coffee

9.25 - 9.30 
Chairman of the day: Martin Blaakman,
Associate lecturer ‘Accessibility of Law’.

9.30 - 9.35
Opening by Willem van Nieuwkerk, director of
Faculty of Governance, Law and Security. The Haage
University of Applied Sciences.

9.35 - 9.45
Introduction to the theme of the SIA platform by Barbara Warwas, lecturer Multilevel Regulation, Janique Scharenborg, platform coordinator and Thomas Geelhoed, student coordinator (HBORechten). The Hague University of Applied Sciences.

9.45 - 10.15 Inspirational speeches.

Maaike de Langen, Senior Policy Advisor, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).
International developments in people-centred justice. The presentation will be in English.

Thomas John MCIArb, Mediator, Arbitrator and Legal Consultant, Director Consensual Dispute Resolution Competition (CDRC) Vienna.
Putting the ‘P’ Back into Justice: A People-Centered Approach to Dispute Resolution.
The presentation will be in English.

10:15 - 10:45 Coffee break and networking opportunity

10:45 - 11:00
Marc Hertogh, Faculty Professor Societal and Institutional Dimensions of the Rule of Law, Utrecht University; Professor Sociology of Law, University of Groningen, plv. chairman the State Commission on the Rule of Law. The broken promise of the rule of law.

11.00 - 12.00 Interactive discussion moderated by Laurence Guérin, lecturer Citizenship, Academica University of Applied Sciences
What can we learn from the respective practice areas of our panelled

Maurits Barendrecht, The Hague Insitute for Innovation of Law.
Willemijn van Helden, Director at Het Juridisch Loket.
Ties Schelfhout, Policy advisor & company secretary at the municipality of The Hague.
Prof Theo de Roos, on behalf of Restorative Justice Netherlands.
Jin Ho Verdonschot, Knowledge Centre for the Subsidised Legal Aid System, Legal Aid Board.
Tim Verheij, Dutch Association of Legal Advice Centres.
Tanja van den Berge, Training Manager HBO Law, Hogeschool Leiden, The National Training Consultation HBO Law Chairman (LOO).
Julien van Ostaaijnen, Lecturer Law & Security, Avans & Fontys University of Applied Sciences.
Alexandre Taillandier, The Hague Humanity Hub (to be confirmed).

12.15 - 13.00 Workshops (see the descriptions below)

13.00 - 14.00 Closing and networking lunch (Café West)

Workshops

Workshop 1

Trix Mulder, Lecturer in Legal Aspects of Entrepreneurship, Hanze University Groningen and Willem Bantema, Lecturer in Governance and Security, NHL Stenden University of Applied Sciences. Local: OV407

The Jurist of the Future: skills and education in a changing legal landscape. Legal practice is in transition due to social and technological developments. Changing laws and regulations and the influence of, among other things, technology are making new demands on the skills and abilities of lawyers. But does current legal education still sufficiently match the required skills expected of the lawyer of the future? In this interactive workshop, we discuss how the legal profession is changing and which competences are essential to be prepared for this. We reflect on the connection between education and practice and discuss the necessary adjustments within the legal curriculum. We cordially invite you to exchange views with us on the future of legal education and the development of legal professionals.

Workshop 2

Arnt Mein, Lecturer in Responsive Legal Practice, Hogeschool van Amsterdam.
Local: OV411

The difficulty that socio-legal professionals have with (the moral questions in) providing customisation. Providing customisation in legal professional practice turns out to be easier said than done. It takes effort and evokes moral discomfort. In my workshop, I report on an exploratory study on how legal professionals at municipalities and implementing organisations of the state deal with moral questions that emerge when they want to offer customisation. How can we achieve a breakthrough in professional practice and education?

Workshop 3

Naomi van Stapele, lecturer on Inclusive Education, De Haagse Hogeschool; Laurence Guérin, lecturer on Citizenship, Dean School of Education & Society, Academica Hogeschool; Barbara Warwas, lecturer on Multilevel Regulation, De Haagse Hogeschool. 
Local: OV431

How can we learn from discomfort and mediation in higher education?

With this workshop, we dive into our project on relational peer mediation and the pedagogy of discomfort. In the project, we train students and teachers how to learn from emotions, triggering situations of discomfort to foster relationality, collectivity, and intellectual and emotional flexibility of students and teachers. The workshop will be divided in two parts. In the first part, we will discuss what discomfort is. In the second half, we will use mediation techniques to practice how to address the situations of discomfort in the classroom and beyond. This workshop is for students and teachers of any study program (and for any other interested participants).

Workshop 4

Majda Lamkadden, associate lecturer, Access to Justice, Utrecht University of Applied Sciences.
Local: OV434

A significant part of front-line social-legal support is regulated at the municipal level. In this workshop, we will discuss the research by HU's lectorate Access to Law on the extent to which the current socio-legal support offer in municipalities matches the needs of its residents.

Using quantitative data (such as age, income, level of education), we examine whether there is a relationship between geographical differences in the socio-legal support offer, in municipalities and the needs of residents. The discussion addresses follow-up questions around equal access to justice for all residents in the Netherlands.

Workshop 5

Naomi Hoefsmit, legal advisor and Ms Sherine Elawa, senior legal advisor, From the Legal Help Desk. 
Local: OV475

In this interactive workshop, two legal advisers from the Legal Help Desk discuss a number of cases in different areas of law that they have come across in their practice. They ask the workshop participants to think and talk with them about how they would handle these cases. The outcome of the cases is shared with the participants so that they can see how theory and practice can sometimes be surprisingly different from each other.