“Thinking Ahead in Private Law“

With the academic symposium "Thinking Ahead in Private Law," being held in English on 1–2 October 2026, we celebrated the Institute’s 100-year anniversary. With a focus on our core research areas, we looked to the future in the international, interdisciplinary, and dialogue-based spirit that has characterized the Institute since its founding. 

Program

Thursday, 1 October 2026

2:00 p.m. – 2:15 p.m.
Welcome
Ralf Michaels

2:15 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.
Precedents and Time in European Laws
Nils Jansen

3:00 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.
Discussion

3:30 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Break

4:00 p.m. – 4:45 p.m.
Reimagining Hosting
Annelise Riles

4:45 p.m. – 5:15 p.m.   
Discussion

 

Friday, 2 October 2026

9:30 a.m. – 10:15 a.m.               
Contesting Family Law Exceptionalism: The Sexual, Economic, and Natural Family
Fernanda G. Nicola

10:15 a.m. – 10:45 a.m.             
Discussion

10:45 a.m. – 11:15 a.m.             
Break

11:15 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.        
Corporate Law in Transformation. The Art of Integration under the Rise of European Business Law
Rüdiger Veil

12:00 p.m. – 12:30 p.m.                           
Discussion

12:30 p.m. – 1:30 p.m.               
Break

1:30 p.m. – 1:40 p.m.                 
Congratulations from the “Freunde des Hamburger Max-Planck-Instituts“
Walter Doralt, Jennifer Trinks

1:40 p.m. – 2:40 p.m.                 
Panel discussion featuring the speakers

2:40 p.m. – 2:45 p.m.                 
Closing remarks