In essence, airport slots are planning tools for the rationing of capacity at airports where available capacity falls short of air travel demand. Since the availability of slots is directly... Show moreIn essence, airport slots are planning tools for the rationing of capacity at airports where available capacity falls short of air travel demand. Since the availability of slots is directly connected to the capacity of an airport at a particular date and time, a slot is by definition a scarce resource. The extent of. Slot scarcity depends on the congestion level of an airport. Excess demand for slots has substantial implications for airlines, coordinators and airports alike, as well as for society as a whole. This dissertation is designed to explore the compatibility of the global and specific legal regimes governing airport slot coordination with the particular socio-economic challenges that international organizations, governments and air transport industry stakeholders are experiencing today. A multitude of socio-economic objectives are identified, including but not limited to the environment in terms of noise and carbon reduction policies, growing airport access issues and general debates on airport functions to society. The number of so-called 'super-congested' airports in terms of the full slot capacity being historically 'occupied' by incumbent carriers are on the rise and are carefully studied from a policy and legal point of view. Show less
In large-scale infrastructure projects, the Dutch government allows its citizens to suffer some damage and nuisance ('facilitated damage'). The government then aims to settle claims and compensate... Show moreIn large-scale infrastructure projects, the Dutch government allows its citizens to suffer some damage and nuisance ('facilitated damage'). The government then aims to settle claims and compensate that damage; it also tries to restore the trust relationship between victimized citizens and the government. How can government arrive at a trust-building compensation policy if it has facilitated damage for a group of citizens in a large-scale infrastructural project, for the sake of the public interest? In this research, an interdisciplinary theoretical framework of trust-building compensation policy is designed based on legal, public administrative and political science insights. Subsequently, on the basis of three extensive case studies – the construction of the North/South metro line in Amsterdam, the expansion of Schiphol Airport, and the consequences of gas extraction in Groningen – the study analyzes to what extent these theoretical insights have an effect in practice: did they help to build or recover trust in government? The aim of the study is to provide practical and concrete guidelines for lawyers and policymakers involved in compensation policy, so that they know how not to damage trust in the government in the future. Show less
In order to answer the research question, the dissertation is divided into four parts. Part I examines the ratio legis of the 1999 Montreal Convention to determine to what extent uniformity is a... Show moreIn order to answer the research question, the dissertation is divided into four parts. Part I examines the ratio legis of the 1999 Montreal Convention to determine to what extent uniformity is a principal aim of the convention that must be pursued in its application. Part II analyses the factors which already existed at the time of the signing and prevented its uniform application. Part III scrutinizes the fragmentation factors that only appeared during the lifespan of the convention. Part IV makes different suggestions to improve the uniform application of the convention and to reduce its fragmentation. The author concludes the research with a list of not less than 10 recommendations to protect the aim of uniformity of the international air carrier liability regime established by the convention. Show less
There has never been a more pertinent time to discuss the accountability and the legal responsibility of Frontex, the European Border and Coast Guard Agency, for fundamental rights violations. In a... Show moreThere has never been a more pertinent time to discuss the accountability and the legal responsibility of Frontex, the European Border and Coast Guard Agency, for fundamental rights violations. In a period that hosts the first legal actions vis-à-vis the agency and a series of relevant non-judicial investigations, including by the European Parliament, this dissertation aims to address the main problem underlying these accountability efforts, namely the ‘problem of many hands’. As conceptualised by Dennis Thompson, this problem is where the multiplicity of the actors involved obscures the various responsibilities and creates gaps in accountability.To address it, this work contests the dominant ways of looking at the concepts of responsibility and accountability, and reimagines them for their optimal function.It adopts a holistic approach, taking into account not only judicial, but also other forms of accountability, studying not only EU liability law, but also other legal remedies before the CJEU, the ECtHR, and domestic courts, building bridges between international and EU law, and traveling from the empirical to the conceptual, to the normative, and from there to the applied.It creates the foundations for the accountability of the agency inside and outside courts, within the EU borders and beyond. Show less
Cultural objects have a protected status on account of their intangible value, as symbols of an identity. This has been so since the early days of international law, and today there is an extensive... Show moreCultural objects have a protected status on account of their intangible value, as symbols of an identity. This has been so since the early days of international law, and today there is an extensive legal framework that ensures this protection.Yet, when it comes to claims by former owners to items such as Nazi looted art, colonial booty, or more recently looted antiquities, the situation is less straightforward. On the one hand, such claims are often not supported by positive law at all. On the other hand, non-binding regulations urge present possessors to find `just' solutions to claims – not as a legal obligation but as a matter of morality. This raises a fundamental question: if we believe that the application of the law leads to injustice, is it not time to change the law or the way it is applied?This study explores how cross-border claims to cultural objects fit in the wider legal framework, and where blind spots or clashes occur. Its aim is to identify new directions that can help further develop this field, with the ultimate aim of fostering just solutions. Show less
The Eurocrisis forcefully exposed the Euro’s structural deficiencies, which are back in the limelight due to COVID-19. It is widely acknowledged that EU fiscal integration is required to adequately... Show moreThe Eurocrisis forcefully exposed the Euro’s structural deficiencies, which are back in the limelight due to COVID-19. It is widely acknowledged that EU fiscal integration is required to adequately remedy the remaining deficiencies. However, national constitutional authorities limit the scope for EU fiscal integration based on national sovereignty, democracy and parliamentary prerogatives. The result is a fundamental dilemma: effective EU fiscal integration appears necessary to stabilize the Euro and legally impossible due to national constitutional limits.Confronted with this dilemma, this thesis determines the national constitutional space available for EU fiscal integration. Part I includes a comparative assessment of national constitutional limits to determine how constitutional systems react or could react to EU fiscal integration. Part II tests current EMU reform proposals against the charted national constitutional to evaluate their attainability. Overall, the thesis demonstrates that even rigid national constitutional limits can accommodate EU fiscal integration. To rebut the outlined dilemma the thesis proposes: First, to comprehensively include EU fiscal integration benefits into the national constitutional appraisal thereby replacing the prevailing competence-centric interpretation of national sovereignty and democracy. And second, to design EU fiscal integration in light of national constitutional concerns. Both propositions facilitate the attainment of EU fiscal integration by equally respecting national constitutional concerns. Show less
This dissertation examines the practice and legal foundation of United Nations General Assembly activity of a quasi-legislative, quasi-judicial, recommendatory, empowering and sanctioning nature in... Show moreThis dissertation examines the practice and legal foundation of United Nations General Assembly activity of a quasi-legislative, quasi-judicial, recommendatory, empowering and sanctioning nature in the field of international justice. It evaluates the potential for theAssembly to adopt creative solutions to advance accountability crimes in the future, to not only unite for peace but also against impunity, particularly in the face of Security Council deadlock. Show less
The text of the Constitution for the Kingdom of the Netherlands (de Grond- wet voor het Koninkrijk der Nederlanden) is sober, devoid of legal and political doctrine. Given the restrained character... Show moreThe text of the Constitution for the Kingdom of the Netherlands (de Grond- wet voor het Koninkrijk der Nederlanden) is sober, devoid of legal and political doctrine. Given the restrained character of its text, the Dutch constitution has always left relations within and between political institutions on the national level such as the government (the regering) and parliament (the Staten-Generaal, composed of the Tweede Kamer and the Eerste Kamer) fairly unsettled. Indeed, it is still uncertain which characteristics determine when rules in the political process could be fairly characterised as legal. Is the legal character of a rule dependent on its enforceability by the courts, on its ability to constitute an obligation that does not allow for deviations, or is there another characteristic that is more important for establishing the legality of a rule? To answer these and other questions, a new perspective on the relation between law and politics in the Dutch constitution is required. This thesis aims to provide such a perspective by introducing the concept of conventions into Dutch constitutional doctrine. Show less
This study addresses the frontier of coastal State jurisdiction and freedom of overflight through the lens of contemporary challenges in the maritime arena. From jurisdiction in airspace over... Show moreThis study addresses the frontier of coastal State jurisdiction and freedom of overflight through the lens of contemporary challenges in the maritime arena. From jurisdiction in airspace over maritime constructions, to air defence identification zones, and the provision of air traffic services in international airspace, it examines assertions of coastal State jurisdiction beyond that which is explicitly granted under international law. ‘Creeping jurisdiction’ as such assertions are known, is not a new phenomenon and much has been written on it over the years. This research aims to contribute to this body of work by approaching the matter exclusively from the perspective of freedom of overflight. Show less
Collective identity can be altered by attacking culture’s tangible components (a temple) which are often a manifestation of or a support to their intangible (spiritual practice). That... Show moreCollective identity can be altered by attacking culture’s tangible components (a temple) which are often a manifestation of or a support to their intangible (spiritual practice). That identity can also be altered by attacking culture’s intangible in isolation (prohibition of spiritual practice). The research determines the extent to which international adjudicatory mechanisms have considered the causes, means and consequences of intentionally attacking culture’s tangible and intangible components. The research then brings their separate practice together. Based on treaty law, culture will be placed in a legal mould. Culture can be anthropical or natural, movable or immovable, secular or religious, tangible or intangible, regardless of terminology (cultural property, cultural heritage, intangible or tangible cultural heritage). Culture will then be placed in a judicial mould, in order to consider how natural and legal persons can invoke cultural damage in judicial proceedings. Culture is a legacy-oriented triptych made of local, national and international panels. While each panel makes sense in isolation, they are best understood when viewed together. State responsibility and individual criminal responsibility-based jurisdictions have accepted that attacking culture may be both tangible-centred and heritage-centred in terms of typology of damage. They have further recognised that the victims of such attacks can be natural persons as members of the collective or the collective as the sum of natural persons. But the victims can also be legal persons which may participate in judicial proceedings and seek reparations for harm sustained as a result of damage inflicted to their property (a museum’s building as well as its artefacts). Show less
This dissertation assesses the current practices of parallel enforcement of international cartels from the perspective of proportionality of the overall punishment. The international community of... Show moreThis dissertation assesses the current practices of parallel enforcement of international cartels from the perspective of proportionality of the overall punishment. The international community of active cartel enforcers continues to grow. This has resulted in global cartels commonly being pursued in parallel in more than five jurisdictions, sometimes even more than ten. Still, there is currently very little international coordination aimed at limiting multiple enforcement of the same overarching cartel behaviour. Rather than adopting jurisdictional self-restraint, authorities appear keen to extend their extraterritorial reach to punish foreign cartel conduct. In addition, current sanctioning of international cartels is characterised by the piling on of individual fines imposed on the basis of domestically-focused sanctioning policies. These policies typically do not take into account foreign sanctions already imposed for the same overall conduct. This also means that authorities are not taking into account the proportionality of the overall punishment, neither from a retributive nor from a consequentialist perspective. Based on the research presented in this dissertation, it is submitted that overall proportionality of fines for international cartels can only be ensured if authorities take into account the extent to which retributive and deterrence objectives have already been achieved through sanctions imposed elsewhere. Show less
