Professor Haentjens has held the chair for Civil Law since 1 January 2023.

More information about Matthias Haentjens

Studies and career

Professor Haentjens studied Greek and Latin at the University of Amsterdam (BA cum laude), and obtained his master's degree in 2001. He became a teacher of Classics and later obtained a master's degree in Law (cum laude) in 2003 at the University of Amsterdam. He obtained his PhD at the University of Amsterdam in 2007 and has been a visiting scholar at Université de Paris II (Panthéon-Assas), Harvard Law School and New York University School of Law.

Between 1 August 2012 and 31 December 2022, Matthias was a Professor of Private Law, specialising in financial law. He has held the chair for Civil Law since 1 January 2023.

Since 2016, Professor Haentjens was a Deputy Judge at the Court of Amsterdam, and since 2020, he has been a member of the Supreme Court Bar Committee. He advises several national and international law-making bodies. He was a member of the EU Commission’s Expert Group for the Law Applicable to Securities and Claims and advised the Dutch government on the Securities Transfer Act. He has been a member of the UNIDROIT Working Groups for Digital Assets and Private Law and Bank Insolvency and is an elected member of several international professional organisations, including the International Insolvency Institute, the European Law Institute and the European Banking Institute, where he is Secretary to the Academic Board.

Prior to joining Leiden Law School, Professor Haentjens worked as an attorney at De Brauw Blackstone Westbroek. In this capacity, he handled cases both as a transaction lawyer and as a Supreme Court litigator. In 1 January 2023, he rejoined De Brauw as a part-time attorney.

Research

Professor Haentjens is primarily interested in property law, tort law, private international law and Supreme Court litigation. His research focuses on how traditional systems of law cope with modern developments such as digital assets and emission rights. The interaction between EU law and national private law, and between private law and public law, is another key area of interest. Is our private legal system prepared for the next few decades, and when we will have to address climate change and digitalisation?

Professor Haentjens’ key publications include his legislative advice for the Assocation of International Insolvency Law ‘COVID-19 as a stress-test for insolvency law’ (2021, in Dutch), his book ‘Financial Collateral: Law and Practice’ (Oxford University Press, 2020) and his inaugural address at Ghent University entitled ‘Incoherence United, Private Law Concepts under Pressure of EU Financial Law’ (Tijdschrift voor Privaatrecht 2017/III, in Dutch).

His research is part of the Coherent Private Law research programme.

Teaching

Professor Haentjens is responsible for both undergraduate (Law and International Business Law) and graduate courses (Civil Law) and teaches various seminars.

Activities