Thalia Kruger (University of Antwerp): The Problem with Legal Certainty in Private International Law

About the Speaker
Thalia Kruger is professor of private international law at the University of Antwerp, and senior research associate at the University of Johannesburg. Her work spans various sub-parts of private international law, including family law, contracts and procedure. She is particularly interested in how private international law aids or prevents marginalisation of groups, placing them or leaving them in vulnerable positions. In 2014 she was venturous enough to give a series of Hague Academy lectures on The Quest for Legal Certainty. Now she is building further on that work.

About the Topic
Legal certainty is often considered foundational in private international law. It is used as justification for some of our connecting factors, and their application in time, as well as for our standards on recognition of foreign authentic instruments and judgments. However, if understood in a positivistic and precise manner, legal certainty can impede or complicate legal changes. The paper investigates where legal certainty has undesired consequences, especially in a context of righting past wrongs.

About the Virtual Workshop Series
The virtual workshop series “Current Research in Private International Law" is organised by Ralf Michaels and Philipp Kronier. The series features leading national and international scholars who present and discuss their work on current developments and research topics in private international law. The workshops are geared to scholars who are researching in the field of private international law, but attendance is open to all individuals having an academic interest (doctoral candidates and students are expressly invited).

The virtual workshop will be held as a video conference via Zoom. Please register no later than Monday, 1 June 2026 using this LINK.
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