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More information about Carel Stolker

Academic career

Carel Stolker studied in Leiden and began his academic career in 1979 at Leiden University’s Civil Law department. There, he taught civil law, including contract law, liability law, property and health law. He also provided extensive postgraduate training to lawyers, notaries, judges and in-house lawyers.

In 1988, he obtained his PhD for his comparative law book on medical malpractice law (Kluwer). His supervisors were Professor Hans Nieuwenhuis and Professor Bernard Sluijters.

In 1991, he taught liability law at the University of California Hastings College of the Law in San Francisco.

In 1996, he was appointed Professor by Leiden University.

Stolker's inaugural lecture was about the emergence of a claims culture in the Netherlands and across Europe. He has also contributed articles on a wide range of topics relating to private law and philosophy – including wrongful birth and wrongful life – to national and international journals. In collaboration with Anneleen Broekhuijsen, he wrote the book ‘Medicines and Liability’ (Kluwer, 1986). Published in 1989, ‘Van arts naar advocaat’, meaning ‘From doctor to lawyer’ (Boom, Scheltema & Holkema/Kluwer) discussed the legal and social causes of the American claims culture and how Europe could learn from it.

Stolker has edited various interdisciplinary collections, including ‘Ramp en Recht. Beschouwingen over rampen, verantwoordelijkheid en aansprakelijkheid’, meaning ‘Disaster and Law. Reflections on disasters, responsibility and liability’ (2001, with Professor Muller), ‘Beginselen van behoorlijk rampenonderzoek’, meaning ‘Principles of proper disaster research’ (2002, with Professor Muller and others), ‘Contractvrijheid’, meaning ‘Freedom of Contract’ (1999, with Professor Hartlief) and ‘Over de grenzen van strafrecht en burgerlijk recht’, meaning ‘On the limits of criminal law and civil law’ (1995, with Professor Hol). Many of his publications have also concerned product liability law. Another ongoing topic of research was civil health law, on which he has written and taught extensively.

In 2003, Stolker gave the Dies lecture in Leiden on law as an academic discipline. His lecture sparked a debate among Dutch lawyers about the foundations of their discipline.

Ten years later, this debate resulted in his book on law schools across the globe: ‘Rethinking the Law School. Education, Research, Outreach and Governance.’ (Cambridge University Press 2014, available in Open Access: https://scholarlypublications.universiteitleiden.nl/access/item%3A3069731/view).

This book is based on his experiences as a lecturer, researcher and administrator. In the run-up to his rectorship in 2013, he added chapters on the major challenges facing the modern research university and the most effective way to manage universities. The book contains several chapters on the future of legal scholarship and legal training.

As rector, Stolker’s university speeches between 2013 and 2021 focused on the role of the university in modern society and covered topics such as 'science diplomacy', academic freedom, interdisciplinary collaboration and safe, inclusive campuses.

Stolker continues to be a member of the Editorial Board of the legal publication ‘Tekst & Commentaar’ and of the loose-leaf series ‘Onrechtmatige daad’, meaning ‘Tort law’. He also contributes articles to both publications.

In February 2016, Stolker was appointed a member of the Royal Holland Society of Sciences and Humanities.

Administrative positions (a selection)

Stolker holds a number of longstanding administrative positions both within Leiden University and beyond.

From 1997 onwards, besides being a Professor he was also the Director of the E.M. Meijers Institute for Legal Research at Leiden Law School, and from 2001 onwards, he served as Vice Dean for Research.

Stolker was Dean of Leiden Law School from 2005 to 2011.

From 2013 to 2021, he was Rector Magnificus and Chair of Leiden University’s Executive Board.

He has previously held numerous academic (NWO) and policy-oriented positions. From 2011 to 2016, he was a member of the Board of Directors of the Research Foundation – Flanders (FWO) and he was a member (2005) and the Vice Chair (2010) of two review committees of the Dutch judiciary respectively. He was also a member of the Supervisory Board of the National Museum of World Cultures (the overarching museum organisation for the National Museum of Ethnology, Tropenmuseum, Afrika Museum and Wereldmuseum).

Stolker was appointed a member of the Royal Holland Society of Sciences and Humanities (KHMW) in February 2016.

Current work

Stolker is currently Chair of the Supervisory Board of the National Museum of Antiquities, member of the Supervisory Board of Leiden&Partners, Chair of the Lucas van Leyden Patronage at Museum De Lakenhal, Chair of the NIAS-Lorentz Advisory Board, a member of the Supervisory Board of the Leyden Academy on Vitality and Ageing, and a member of the Advisory Board of the District Court of The Hague. He is also a member of the Advisory Board of Una Europa, a network of eleven European universities.

In 2022, Carel Stolker was asked by the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam to chair an independent committee on collaboration with Chinese partners (‘Independence weighed, Eindrapport Commissie onderzoek Cross-Cultureel Mensenrechtencentrum Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam’, 2022) and in 2023 by the University of Amsterdam on academic freedom and 'woke' (‘Krachtig en kwetsbaar Academische vrijheid in de praktijk: Onderzoeksrapport, aanbevelingen en beschouwing naar aanleiding van een klokkenluidersmelding aan de Universiteit van Amsterdam’, 2023). In spring 2024, he participated in a teaching and research review group at the Sutherland School of Law at University College Dublin.

Farewell and recognition

Carel Stolker retired from Leiden University on 8 February 2021. Upon his retirement, he was appointed Officer in the Order of Orange-Nassau and was awarded the ‘Leiden honorary medal’ by the municipality of Leiden (1 October 2022). Athena's Angels, four female full professors, awarded him ‘Angels Approved’ status ‘as a token of their gratitude for his support for women in academia and Athena's Angels initiatives and campaigns over the years’ (5 February 2021).

Stolker’s former academic and administrative colleagues gifted him a liber amicorum entitled ‘Suis’ (Boom Juridisch 2021) containing contributions about his academic and administrative work and the role of science and the university in society.

Activities