Niek Strohmaier obtained his Bachelor and Master degree (cum laude) in Psychology at Utrecht University and in 2016 he commenced his PhD research at Leiden University’s Law School. His dissertation was on the psychology of financial and legal decision making in the context of business failure. During his PhD research, Niek also completed the Advanced Master program in Law & Finance (cum laude and valedictorian) at Leiden University. Currently, Niek Strohmaier works as an assistant professor of empirical legal studies and also as a paralegal at RESOR, an Amsterdam-based law firm.

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Niek’s current research is focused on unconscious biases in legal judgments, for example in relation to causality, foreseeability, reasonableness, etc., mostly in the context of directors’ liability (in- and outside of bankruptcy), but also in relation to liability law more generally. The underlying theme of Niek’s research is that people (and thus lawyers) are inclined to automatically and unconsciously form quick and intuitive moral judgments, which subsequently can affect legal reasoning and decision making in undesirable ways. In its essence, the question is whether legally irrelevant moral judgments can unconsciously bias legally relevant judgments. Niek Strohmaier aims to further our understanding of such psychological processes and to develop ways to mitigate the unwanted influences these processes might have in legal contexts.

Niek is affiliated with the Empirical Legal Studies team at Leiden University and teaches courses in empirical research methods as well as the courses ‘Psychology for Lawyers’ and ‘Negotiation & Mediation’, both for law students and lawyers. Additionally, Niek frequently gives workshops to lawyers, mediators, and other professionals who are involved in corporate disputes.

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