[Research seminar] Reappropriating the Rule of Law: Between Constituting and Limiting Private Power

On 2 December, the Asser Institute is proud to welcome Dr Ioannis Kampourakis, Postdoctoral Researcher at Erasmus School of Law, Erasmus University Rotterdam. During this research seminar, he will present the working paper “Reappropriating the Rule of Law: Between Constituting and Limiting Private Power”, co-authored with Prof. Alessandra Arcuri and Prof. Sanne Taekema.

In this article, it is argued that private power is a rule of law problem as much as public power. Yet, there is an ambiguity in the function of the rule of law with regards to private power. On the one hand, it promises the regulation of private power and the protection of those who are subjected to it from its arbitrary exercise. On the other hand, private power is, to a significant extent, constituted by law in the first place. Building on law’s capacity to allocate power, we inquire as to an alternative normative core of the rule of law: If law can indeed reshape private power by rearranging legal entitlements, what should be the normative direction of this reshaping? We trace the beginning of an answer by looking into the requirements of moral equality of individuals and democratic participation.

Asser research seminars

During the Asser Research Seminars, external researchers are invited to present their current and upcoming research with the Asser research community. The seminars are semi-open, as we invite a few external people who may be interested in the specific topic of the seminar. However, we aim to keep the group’s size limited, to stimulate interaction and high quality, in-depth discussions. Researchers who are interested in presenting their research to the Asser research community are welcome to send an e-mail to Dr Christophe Paulussen (c.paulussen@asser.nl).