The T.M.C. Asser Instituut (or ''Asser Institute'') is a professional inter-university centre of knowledge and research. The institute carries out research in private and public international law, European law, as well as all other related fields, including international commercial arbitration, international sports law and international humanitarian and criminal law. It was established in 1965 in

The Hague The Hague ( ) is the capital city of the South Holland province of the Netherlands. With a population of over half a million, it is the third-largest city in the Netherlands. Situated on the west coast facing the North Sea, The Hague is the c ...

and it is affiliated with the

University of Amsterdam The University of Amsterdam (abbreviated as UvA, ) is a public university, public research university located in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Established in 1632 by municipal authorities, it is the fourth-oldest academic institution in the Netherlan ...

. Since September 2021 the institute also hosts the Special Chair Arms Control Law. The institute is named after Tobias Michael Carel Asser (1838–1913), who was a Dutch jurist, and co-winner (with Alfred Fried) of the

Nobel Peace Prize The Nobel Peace Prize (Swedish language, Swedish and ) is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the Will and testament, will of Sweden, Swedish industrialist, inventor, and armaments manufacturer Alfred Nobel, along with the prizes in Nobe ...

in 1911 for his role in the formation of the

Permanent Court of Arbitration The Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) is an intergovernmental organization headquartered at the Peace Palace, in The Hague, Netherlands. Unlike a judicial court in the traditional sense, the PCA provides administrative support in international ...

at the first

Hague peace conference The Hague Conventions of 1899 and 1907 are a series of international treaties and declarations negotiated at two international peace conferences at The Hague in the Netherlands. Along with the Geneva Conventions, the Hague Conventions were amon ...

(1899). He also advocated for the creation of an international academy of law, which led to founding of the ''Revue de Droit International et de Législation Comparée'' with John Westlake and

Gustave Rolin-Jaequemyns Gustave Henri Ange Hippolyte Rolin-Jaequemyns (31 January 1835 – 9 January 1902) was a Belgian lawyer, diplomat and Minister of the Interior (1878–1884) as a member of the Liberal Party (Belgium), Unitarian Liberal Party. He is the son of H ...

, the Institut de Droit International and the creation of the

Hague Academy of International Law The Hague Academy of International Law () is a center for high-level education in both public and private international law housed in the Peace Palace in The Hague, Netherlands. Courses are taught in English and French and, except for External ...

Fundamental research

The T.M.C. Asser Instituut aims towards fundamental and independent policy-oriented research. Its current (2022-2026) research agenda is ‘Rethinking public interests in international and European Law: Pairing critical reflection with perspectives for action.' Research is conducted within four research strands: * In the public interest: accountability of the state and the prosecution of crimes * Regulation in the public interest: Disruptive technologies in peace and security * Public interest(s) inside/within international and European institutions and their practices * Transnational public interests: constituting public interest beyond and below the state Besides the research facilities for its team of expert researchers, the institute has access to an extensive international network of academic and scientific contacts. The T.M.C. Asser Instituut aims to develop young talent. The Asser PhD Programme offers promising young lawyers the opportunity to work on their research. The funding and appointment of new candidates is done in collaboration with other institutions, preferably law faculties.

Contract-research and legal advice

The institute carries out contract research and consultancy work. This ranges from tailored consultancy finding (ad hoc) solutions for small legal issues to coordination and/or export of long-term structural (research) projects. Clients include among others the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are Geography of the European Union, located primarily in Europe. The u ...

, national governments, ministries,

international organization An international organization, also known as an intergovernmental organization or an international institution, is an organization that is established by a treaty or other type of instrument governed by international law and possesses its own le ...

s, and law firms.

Conferences and events

T.M.C. Asser Instituut organizes regular lectures, seminars, and conferences. They serve as a platform for high-level discussions and interactions with the institute's multitude of partners, academics and practitioners, policy-makers, and the wider legal community of The Hague and beyond.

Annual T.M.C. Asser Lecture

On the occasion of its 50th anniversary in 2015, the T.M.C Asser Instituut launched the Annual T.M.C. Asser Lecture on the development of international law. Each year the institute invites an internationally renowned jurist and outstanding public intellectual to take inspiration from

Tobias Asser Tobias Michael Carel Asser (; 28 April 1838 – 29 July 1913) was a Dutch lawyer and legal scholar. In 1911, he won the Nobel Peace Prize (together with Alfred Fried) for his role in the establishment of the Permanent Court of Arbitration at the ...

’s vision and to examine how to respond to ‘the condition of society’. It aspires to be a platform for constructive, critical reflection on the role of law in addressing the challenges and (potentially radical) changes of the global society of the 21st century. Speakers at the Annual Lecture have included

Brigid Laffan Brigid Laffan is an Irish political scientist and Emeritus professor at Robert Schuman Centre for Advanced Studies at the European University Institute. ''Politico Europe'' ranked her among women who shape Europe in November 2018. She has been C ...

(2022), Andrew Murray (2020),

Anne Orford Anne Orford is a professor of law and an ARC Australian Laureate Fellow at the University of Melbourne. Her main focus of research are in the areas of public international law, history and theory of international law and international economic ...

(2019), Martti Koskenniemi (2018),

Saskia Sassen Saskia Sassen (born January 5, 1947) is a Dutch-American sociologist noted for her analyses of globalization and international human migration. She is a professor of sociology at Columbia University in New York City, and the London School of Eco ...

(2017),

Onora O'Neill Onora Sylvia O'Neill, Baroness O'Neill of Bengarve (born 23 August 1941) is a British philosopher and a crossbench member of the House of Lords. Early life and education Onora Sylvia O'Neill was born on 23 August 1941 in Aughafatten. The daug ...

(2016), and

Joseph Weiler Joseph Halevi Horowitz Weiler (born 2 September 1951) is an American academic, currently serving as European Union Jean Monnet Chair at New York University School of Law and Senior Fellow of the Minda de Gunzburg Center for European Studies, ...

(2015).

Publisher

The institute has its own

publisher Publishing is the activities of making information, literature, music, software, and other content, physical or digital, available to the public for sale or free of charge. Traditionally, the term publishing refers to the creation and distribu ...

: T.M.C. Asser Press. The following yearbooks are published: the ''Netherlands Yearbook of International Law'', the ''Yearbook of International Humanitarian Law'', the ''Yearbook of International Sports Arbitration'', and the ''NL ARMS Netherlands Annual Review of Military Studies''. T.M.C. Asser Press also publishes scholarly and peer-reviewed journals, including the ''Netherlands International Law Review'', the ''Hague Journal on the Rule of Law'', the ''European Business Organization Law Review'', ''The International Sports Law Journal'', and the ''Nederlands Internationaal Privaatrecht''. T.M.C. Asser Press published in cooperation with

Springer-Verlag Springer Science+Business Media, commonly known as Springer, is a German multinational publishing company of books, e-books and peer-reviewed journals in science, humanities, technical and medical (STM) publishing. Originally founded in 1842 in ...

Hague Academic Coalition

The T.M.C. Asser Instituut is a member of the

Hague Academic Coalition The Hague Academic Coalition (HAC) is a consortium of academic institutions in the fields of international relations, international law and international development. Members and Organization The member institutions are: * Carnegie Foundation * The ...

(HAC). The member institutions are: * Carnegie Foundation *Hague Institute for the Internationalisation of Law (HiiL) * International Institute of Social Studies of Erasmus University Rotterdam (ISS) *

Leiden University Leiden University (abbreviated as ''LEI''; ) is a Public university, public research university in Leiden, Netherlands. Established in 1575 by William the Silent, William, Prince of Orange as a Protestantism, Protestant institution, it holds the d ...

- Campus The Hague / Grotius Centre * Netherlands Institute of International Relations 'Clingendael' *

The Hague Academy of International Law The Hague Academy of International Law () is a center for high-level education in both public and private international law housed in the Peace Palace in The Hague, Netherlands. Courses are taught in English and French and, except for External ...

*The Hague University of Applied Sciences (

Haagse Hogeschool The Hague University of Applied Sciences (abbreviated as: ''THUAS''; ) is a university of applied sciences with its campuses located in The Hague, Delft and Zoetermeer. The main campus in The Hague is located behind The Hague Hollands Spoor ra ...

) *T.M.C. Asser Instituut

Hague Initiative for Law and Armed Conflict

The HILAC Law and Armed Conflict Lecture Series is an occasional evening lecture series on the subject of law and armed conflict. It is hosted by the Hague Initiative for Law and Armed Conflict (HILAC), consisting of the T.M.C. Asser Instituut, the Netherlands Red Cross and the Amsterdam Center for International Law and held at the T.M.C. Asser Instituut.

Sports Law

The Asser Institute is one of the few research institutes specialized in sports law. Researchers Antoine Duval and Ben Von Rompuy from the International Sports Law Centre lodged a complaint against the

International Skating Union The International Skating Union (ISU) is the international sport governing body, governing body for competitive ice skating disciplines, including figure skating, synchronized skating, speed skating, and short track speed skating. It was founded ...

to the European Commission on behalf of speed skaters

Mark Tuitert Mark Jan Hendrik Tuitert (; born 4 April 1980) is a retired Dutch speed skating, speed skater. He won gold at the Speed skating at the 2010 Winter Olympics – Men's 1500 metres, 1500 m at the 2010 Winter Olympics. Personal life Tuitert married ...

and Niels Kerstholt in 2014. The European Court of Justice ruled in favor of the speed skaters in their judgement on 21 December 2023. The judgement was delivered simultaneously with judgements on the

European Super League The Unify League (UL), previously known as the European Super League (ESL), was a proposed seasonal football competition for clubs in Europe. It was supposed to be organised by the European Super League Company, S.L., a commercial enterprise ...

case and the

Royal Antwerp FC Royal Antwerp Football Club (commonly referred to as Royal Antwerp or simply Antwerp) is a Belgian professional football club based in the city of Antwerp. They compete in the Belgian Pro League, the top flight of Belgian football. Founded in 1 ...

case, changing the landscape of sports governance. The institute also organises the Annual ISLJ Sports Law Conference.

References

External links

Website of the T.M.C. Asser InstituutWebsite of T.M.C. Asser PressThe Hague Justice Portal: T.M.C. Asser Instituut
{{authority control Legal research institutes Research institutes in the Netherlands Educational institutions established in 1965 Organisations based in The Hague 1965 establishments in the Netherlands