Introduction

The research group Multilevel Regulation is a research group at The Hague University of Applied Sciences (THUAS) established in August 2018.

The central research theme is that private actors, such as businesses, civil society and individuals, are taking on new regulatory roles in the context of recent global governance crises and associated critiques of traditional public regulation. These private actors have not only gained greater powers to shape important public policy questions, but are also able to question, change, undermine and shift the way norms, rules and laws are created and enforced.

About the research group

What is our focus?

The main aim of the research group is to investigate the emerging practical developments in the field of multilevel regulation that have been transforming ways in which standards, rules, and laws are being made, complied with, and practiced.

Specifically, the research group aims at getting ahead of emerging trends in the research and practice of informal dispute resolution (negotiation, mediation, arbitration) in the Netherlands, Europe, and the world.

Politicians, governments, courts, service providers, and local communities all use informal techniques to improve relationships and increase compliance. We research how those informal techniques affect the contemporary legal systems, professional practice, education, and the modern society.

How?

We aim at creating a network of academics, practitioners, representatives of local and central governments, and students to work together towards improving contemporary multilevel regulation and informal dispute resolution through innovation and experimentation.

Partners and network

The research group works towards increasing the local presence in The Netherlands and entering into international collaborations and partnerships in the field of multilevel regulation and dispute resolution.

About the professor

dr. Barbara Warwas

Dr. Barbara Warwas has been employed at THUAS since 2016 in roles as coordinator and lecturer at the International and European Law Programme. In 2018 she was appointed as Professor of Multilevel Regulation. In 2019, she additionally became the Director of the Global Governance Centre of Expertise. Barbara is the author of The Liability of Arbitral Institutions: Legitimacy Challenges and Functional Responses published by Springer, 2016. In 2014, she worked as a drafter, researcher, and administrator for the ground-breaking study on the Legal Instruments and Practices of Arbitration in the EU and Switzerland, commissioned by the European Parliament. Barbara has a PhD in Law from the European University Institute (Florence, Italy). Prior to joining The Hague University of Applied Sciences, Barbara worked as visiting counsel in the litigation department at GE Oil & Gas in Florence and in the Italian law firm Studio Legale Calabresi Guadalupi.

[email protected]

LinkedIn profile

Barbara Warwas

Contemporary regulation requires experimentation and innovative solutions.

Team

Within our research group, researchers, lecturer-researchers and students work closely with practice partners to conduct research. Together they are committed to translating the results of the research -knowledge and insights- into the practice of education and the region.


Meet our team

Team Onderzoek

Projects

Governance challenges of not-for-profit boards

Not-for-profit organizations play an important role in society due to their activities and services they provide to meet the needs of citizens.
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The implications of climate change for the professional practice of the police

Policing in general, and the work of the police as primary policing actor in particular, have continuously been affected by ever-changing social, cultural, political, economic, and ecological developments.
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Mediation as a restorative justice practice in Armenian probation work

The purpose is to explore all opportunities how to develop and strengthen the practice of victim-offender mediation in Armenian probation.
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MLR Student projects

Exploring digital sexual crimes, accountability, and adjudication in The Netherlands

This thesis aims to assess the adequacy of Dutch law in addressing technology-facilitated sexual violence (hereinafter TFSV), explore the challenges in enforcing the laws, and provide recommendations for improving their implementation.
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MLR Student Led Projects: Arbitras

Arbitras is a student-led organization that aims to connect students, academics, and professionals to promote the use and knowledge of Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR). It is as an initiative of the Multilevel Regulation Research Group from THUAS.
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News

11 July 2024

Research

Prestigious Comenius Leadership Fellow grant for dr. Barbara Warwas and dr. Naomi van Stapele

With this grant they will lead a pioneering project at THUAS, to develop a Relational Peer Mediation Training.
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11 January 2024

Research

Researcher joins the Advisory Committee of the Netherlands Helsinki Committee

In June 2023, dr. Anna Matczak joined the Advisory Committee of the Netherlands Helsinki Committee (NHC).
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19 December 2023

Research

Crossing Protect project

Dr. Anna Matczak, has been awarded a funding to carry out the Crossing Protect project, which aims to build a cross-…
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Publications

Article

European Rule of Law and Arbitration: What Standard(s)?

Barbara Warwas, Amanda Kemshaw, Artemis Malliaropoulou and Luca Pantaleo (current and former members of the MLR research group) recently published an article entitled “European Rule of Law and Arbitration: What Standard(s)?”

Publication

Who is ‘the public’ when we talk about crime?

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Inaugural lecture

Returning to the Origins of Multilevel Regulation

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