Lecturer/PhD Researcher Private Law Liability Position of European Ports

Job description

The teaching component falls within the broad scope of Law & Markets and will be determined on the basis of the candidate's expertise and the department's teaching needs. Initially, a substantial part of the teaching is expected to be in the master's programme in Commercial Law.

Indicatively, the teaching duties will focus on a limited, coherent set of courses and may include tutorials, assessment and thesis supervision, with guidance from experienced colleagues. Responsibilities will be tailored to the candidate's experience and stage of development; independent course coordination and substantial teaching development will not be expected at the outset. The precise allocation may vary from year to year in consultation with the department, while the agreed balance between teaching and research will be maintained.

PhD research

The PhD research concerns the private-law liability position of European sea and inland ports in the digital transition. Ports increasingly operate at the intersection of private enterprise, public infrastructure and European regulation. They are subject to expanding regulatory and statutory obligations relating to cybersecurity, digitalisation, critical infrastructure, data governance and sustainability. These obligations cannot always be classified neatly as either public or private law. Some of them are implemented in private relationships, for example through contractual arrangements concerning supply-chain security. Ports also organise many of their activities through private-law instruments, including access agreements, terminal contracts, data-sharing arrangements and contractual limitations of liability.

The central question is how these obligations operate in private relationships and affect private-law duties of care, standards of liability, enforcement and the contractual allocation or limitation of risk. The research will examine, among other matters, the relevance of the EU Port Services Regulation, the NIS2 framework and related European and national rules on cybersecurity and critical infrastructure, including the Dutch Cyberbeveiligingswet. Particular attention will be paid to the extent to which regulatory duties shape open private-law standards and contractual relationships, and to the legal effectiveness of provisions that seek to allocate risks arising from digital incidents.

The project will cover both sea and inland ports and will use selected European jurisdictions and ports for comparison. It will also consider whether, and if so how, the frequent public ownership of port companies affects the relationship between public and private law and the resulting liability position. The principal method will be doctrinal legal research at the intersection of private law, commercial and maritime law, public law and EU law, supplemented by a functional comparative analysis. If useful and feasible, the legal analysis may be informed by interviews with relevant stakeholders, subject to the applicable research-integrity and privacy requirements.

The project primarily contributes to ESL's research priority Digitalisation. Within this thematic priority, it brings together private-law, maritime-law and public-law expertise to examine how digital port infrastructure and data-driven operations reshape duties of care and contractual risk allocation. Its examination of cybersecurity, critical infrastructure and the legal allocation of digital risk also connects with the priority Security, rule of law and social resilience.

The proposed supervisory team consists of Prof. Jolien Kruit as first supervisor, Dr Frank Stevens as co-supervisor, and Prof. Pim Jansen as second supervisor with particular responsibility for the interface between public and private law.

Requirements

Specific Requirements

We are looking for a candidate who:

• has completed, or is close to completing, an LL.M. or equivalent master's degree in law with a strong academic record;
• demonstrates clear potential for academic research, preferably supported by prior research experience or a substantial thesis;
• has a strong interest in private law, commercial law, maritime or transport law and is able to connect these fields with EU law, public law and digital regulation;
• has the attitude and motivation to teach and supervise students within the department of Law & Markets;
• is proficient in written and spoken English (C1 level);
• is proficient in written and spoken Dutch. Candidates who have at least B2 level in Dutch at the moment of application and are willing and able to achieve the level of Dutch required for the relevant teaching duties within the first year of the PhD for relevant teaching duties are also welcome to apply; and
• works independently, accurately and collegially and is able to combine long-term research with teaching responsibilities.

Students who are currently completing their master's degree may apply, provided that the degree is obtained no later than three weeks before the intended starting date.

Candidates who already hold a PhD or who are currently preparing a PhD dissertation elsewhere are generally not eligible for this position.

Additional Information

Benefits

The position is in principle for a period of 6 years, starting 1 January 2027. It has a teaching component of 60%, next to a research component of 40%. The gross monthly salary (scale 10, CAO-NU) is between € 3.706 and € 5.760.

You will be based at Erasmus School of Law, Department Law & Markets in Rotterdam. The lecturer/researcher will also become part of Erasmus Graduate School of Law. The position starts with a temporary employment contract for 18 months. This probationary period consists of an educational programme, offered by Erasmus Graduate School of Law, individual research and teaching tasks. After one year, the progress will be evaluated. In case of a positive evaluation, the contract will be extended. In both phases structured guidance is provided by the thesis supervisors and Erasmus Graduate School of Law.

Next to that, we offer you:

• Everything you need for a good work-life balance: the option to work from home in consultation with your manager, 29 days of paid leave with a 38-hour contract, 8% holiday pay and an 8.3% end-of-year bonus, and a significant discount on a subscription for our on-campus sports centre!
• Sustainable, inclusive and diverse work environment with an open culture, where you can be yourself and we pay attention to each other and to the world around us. Make the most of our bicycle budget, or join networks such as Young@EUR, FAME, QuEUR, or Young Erasmus Academy.
• Time and space for your development in the broadest sense: development days and a personal career budget, foreign exchange opportunities with most costs paid by EUR, and free access to our university library.
• Good pension with ABP that EUR contributes 2/3rds towards, discounts on various collective insurances with Zilveren Kruis Achmea, Loyalis, and Allianz, and compensation for travel, working from home and home internet use.
• Are you currently combining your job with parenthood, or do you want to do so in the future? EUR offers partially paid parental leave and fully paid additional birth leave for partners, and our campus features a daycare.

Erasmus University Rotterdam aspires to be an equitable and inclusive community. We nurture an open culture, where everyone is supported to fulfill their full potential. We see inclusivity of talent as the basis of our successes, and the diversity of perspectives and people as a highly valued outcome. EUR provides equal opportunities to all employees and applicants regardless of gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, religion, ethnicity, age, neurodiversity, functional impairment, citizenship, or any other aspect which makes them unique. We look forward to welcoming you to our community.

Selection process

Deadline for application is 25 October 2026.

Applicants are invited to submit a set of application files (in English):

• EGSL application form including a research proposal (max 2000 words), merged in 1 document,
• motivation letter (max 2 pages),
• CV,
• copy Master's diploma and transcripts (or information on the expected graduation date),
• and, where applicable, evidence of English-language proficiency.

The application form and more information can be found on the EGSL-website. Please apply via the Erasmus University's application portal.

Interviews are expected to take place on 4 or 5 November 2026. Please be aware that invitations for interviews will be send a very short time before, so make sure you are available these dates. If there are days or times within this timeframe that you are not available, please inform EGSL (egsl@law.eur.nl) about this before the application deadline. We will try to take this into account.

Additional comments

More information about Erasmus Universiteit Rotterdam, Erasmus School of Law and Erasmus Graduate School of Law can be found on the websites.

Additional information about the vacancy can be requested by contacting the Erasmus Graduate School of Law office via egsl@law.eur.nl or via one of the supervisors (kruit@vantraa.nl; f.stevens@law.eur.nl; jansen@law.eur.nl).

Work Location(s)

Number of offers available: 1
Company/Institute: Erasmus University Rotterdam
Country: Netherlands
City: Rotterdam
Postal Code: 3062PA
Street: Burgemeester Oudlaan 50