The places that make the Faculty of Law unique

10 September 2026

Studying law in Maastricht is unlike studying law anywhere else. Maastricht University’s (UM) Faculty of Law is known for its international character and distinctive approach to education. Join us on a walk through the faculty’s buildings and discover the story behind this special faculty.

Maastricht University’s Faculty of Law (LAW) is one of the most international law faculties in Europe. It began in 1982 with just a handful of regional students. Today, it is home to 3,500 students from 44 countries!

Students can study Law (‘Rechtsgeleerdheid’) and Tax Law (‘Fiscaal Recht’), for example, as well as English-taught programmes with an international focus, such as European Law School and Law & AI. In total, the faculty offers three bachelor’s programmes and 26 master’s programmes.

While most law faculties focus primarily on their own country’s legal system, UM has purposefully chosen a different approach. Students learn not only how Dutch law works, but also compare different legal systems and examine how European and international law influence national legislation.

Another thing that makes the faculty unique is Problem-Based Learning (PBL). Students work in small groups on legal issues that could arise in real life. This means they collaborate extensively and are well prepared for professional practice.

The monumental hall in the building at Bouillonstraat 1-3.

Karl Dittrich was one of the first members of staff at Maastricht University’s Faculty of Law in 1984. He was a member of the FdR’s first faculty board and was elected to the Executive Board of the university in 1986. From 1994 to 2002, he served as its chair.

A blank sheet

The story of LAW begins with Job Cohen: a name everyone at the faculty has heard of. In the early 1980s, Cohen worked at Leiden University’s Educational Research Bureau. He came up with the idea of bringing a law programme to Maastricht.

Cohen presented his plan to UM, which embraced the idea. In 1982, 99 students enrolled in the new Dutch Law programme. Classes were held in what is now the School of Business and Economics building on Tongersestraat, a former Jesuit monastery. The first step towards establishing the new law faculty.

Karl Dittrich was one of the first members of staff on the new programme. He had studied political science in Leiden and obtained his PhD there a few years earlier.

“I arrived in 1981 with a briefcase containing nothing but a pen and a notepad”, says Dittrich. “We had to build everything from scratch. That made it incredibly exciting work, of course.”

Breaking with tradition

After just a few months, the students and staff moved to another building in the centre of Maastricht. Nieuwenhof, a former monastery on Zwingelput, became their new home. The building is a former beguinage with a beautiful chapel behind it. Today, it houses University College Maastricht, part of the Faculty of Science and Engineering.

A few years later, LAW was officially established. In 1984, Cohen became dean of the Netherlands’ ninth law faculty, with a completely new approach to education. PBL remains the foundation of its teaching to this day.

“Job Cohen and I were both involved in educational innovation at Leiden University”, Dittrich explains. “Neither of us wanted to do things traditionally. Cohen put down on paper how PBL could work within a law programme. That gave us the basis to get started.”

In the beginning, LAW lectures were held at Tongersestraat 53.

After that, Nieuwenhof was LAW's location.

Since the late 1990s, LAW has been based at Bouillonstraat 1-3 and Kapoenstraat 2.

Job Cohen was one of the founders of LAW and became Dean of the faculty in 1984.

Henk Verkoeijen joined Maastricht University in 2004. He started as a building caretaker and later became facilities manager for the Faculty of Law’s buildings. Verkoeijen retired in 2026.

A grand building with history

Since the late 1990s, the faculty has been housed in two distinctive buildings in the centre of Maastricht, including the ‘Oud Gouvernement’. The building on Boullionstraat was formerly home to the provincial government of Limburg. Built in 1935, the Oud Gouvernement is now a listed national heritage building.

Shortly after LAW moved, Henk Verkoeijen joined the university as the building's caretaker. He would eventually stay for another 22 years.“I was immediately struck by the atmosphere”, says Verkoeijen. “It’s a grand building with a lot of history, which you can feel once you step inside. The people were very warm and approachable – from the receptionists to the professors. That sense of warmth has really stayed with me.”

Italian inspiration

The tower at the centre of the Oud Gouvernement is a real eye-catcher. Tall and narrow, it has a pagoda-like pitched roof. At the top – some 154 feet above Boullionstraat – flies the Maastricht University flag.

“It’s a rather unusual tower”, says Verkoeijen. “It really stands out from the other buildings in the area.” This is hardly surprising when you consider that the architect drew inspiration from Italy. The design resembles the tower of the Palazzo Pubblico, the town hall in the Italian city of Siena.

The tower can be seen from a distance, signalling the presence of an important government building. But it was not initially popular with the people of Maastricht. Residents thought it was so ugly that they tried to have it demolished – twice. Today, it is a listed national heritage monument and an integral part of Maastricht’s distinctive cityscape.

The LAW tower.

The tower then.

The tower now.

The relocation of Lady Justice

Lady Justice watches over the Faculty of Law. High above the central hall of Oud Gouvernement hangs a life-size statue of the Roman goddess.

Lady Justice is the ultimate symbol of justice and the legal system. And yet, she does not technically belong here. The statue was sculpted in 1926 for the Palace of Justice on Minderbroedersberg, which is now the university’s administrative building.

For many years, the statue hung above the entrance to the Palace of Justice. But when UM took over the building, Lady Justice had to move. A window was planned for the spot where she stood, so the goddess was relocated to the Faculty of Law.

“The statue was so large that it wouldn’t fit through the doors”, Verkoeijen recalls. “So they cut it into three pieces. They put Lady Justice back together where she now hangs. If you look closely, you can still see the saw marks.”

Huis Hustinx

Cross the car park behind the Oud Gouvernement and you arrive at the faculty’s second location: Kapoenstraat 2.

“At one point, we simply outgrew the building on Boullionstraat”, says Verkoeijen. “So around 2019, we took over the adjacent building on Kapoenstraat. The university had already been using the building for some time, but it belonged to other faculties.”

Kapoenstraat 2 is also known as Herenhuis Hustinx. The townhouse was built in 1882 for J. Hustinx, a Maastricht coffee roaster, although parts of the building are much older. The cellars on which the house stands, for example, date all the way back to the late Middle Ages.

In 2008, UM carried out a major renovation, creating a courtyard with a curved glass roof. The courtyard connects Kapoenstraat 2 with Lenculenstraat 14. This is also where you will find Observant, UM’s independent university newspaper.

Kapoenstraat 2.

The courtyard with the curved glass roof at Kapoenstraat 2.

The back of Kapoenstraat 2.

The cellar at Lenculenstraat 26.

The cellar at Kapoenstraat 2.

Windows with a story to tell

Back at the Oud Gouvernement, there is much more history to see. One of the most beautiful rooms in the building is undoubtedly the Statenzaal, or Council Chamber.

“This is where the Provincial Executive used to hold its public meetings”, Verkoeijen explains. “The wooden ceiling and stained-glass windows are truly magnificent.”

Roermond-based stained-glass artist Joep Nicolas created the six windows. The stained glass tells the story of Limburg’s cultural and political development. Nicolas incorporated historical events and developments that he believed had shaped the province.

“I also find the layout of the room fascinating”, says Verkoeijen. “The provincial representatives used to sit in the gallery, with the public downstairs. Today, it’s the other way around. The students – the audience, so to speak – sit upstairs, while the professor stands downstairs.”

A close-up of one of the stained-glass windows.

The Statenzaal with its stained-glass windows.

The mystery of the memorial plaque

The Statenzaal was also renovated during the building’s major refurbishment in 2008. This required the old gallery to be dismantled. What Verkoeijen found underneath was something he could never have predicted.

“We discovered a large stone memorial plaque signed by the Dutch Queen Wilhelmina”, says the former caretaker. “It was installed when the provincial government building was constructed. Originally, it hung on the wall outside the Statenzaal, but it had been missing for decades.”

It was probably hidden as a precaution during the Second World War. In the years that followed, the building changed hands several times. “No one knew any more that the stone was underneath the gallery. Unfortunately, that’s how we lost various historical objects over the years, and we haven’t been able to recover all of them.”

Today, the stone hangs where it belongs once again, allowing students and staff to admire it.

The memorial plaque was discovered during the renovation of the Statenzaal.

Today, the memorial plaque hangs where it belongs once again.

A royal work of art

Part of the building on Boullionstraat was once used as an official residence. The governor lived to the left of the tower, and members of the Dutch royal family stayed there from time to time.

This explains the presence of several magnificent rooms that were once used for receptions and celebrations. One of Verkoeijen’s favourites is the Salon.

“When there was something important going on, such as a celebration hosted by the governor or a visit from the Queen, guests would be received in the Salon”, says Verkoeijen. “The magnificent wooden ceiling immediately catches your eye. It’s a work of art and perfectly reflects the period in which it was made. Today, the Salon has been transformed into a coffee room.”

Today, the Salon serves as a coffee room.

From ballroom to courtroom

After the reception, guests would once have been taken to the Ballroom. Today, students use this impressive room as a mock courtroom: Moot Court. Where the ceiling is the main attraction in the Salon, the floor is the star of the show in the Ballroom.

“It’s a mosaic made from French oak”, says Verkoeijen. “The UM restored the floor during the major renovation. That wasn’t an easy job: although the mosaic pieces look identical at first glance, each one is slightly different.”

High up in the room, you can still see the former orchestra pit. It sits on a kind of mezzanine between the Salon and the Ballroom.

“The orchestra used to play there like a live jukebox”, Verkoeijen says. “It’s a tiny room with a low ceiling, so it wouldn’t have been a large orchestra.”

Today, the Ballroom is used as a mock courtroom.

A secret courtyard garden

Behind the building lies another hidden gem: the faculty’s courtyard garden. You cannot see it from the front of the building, but law students know exactly where to find it. At lunchtime, especially on sunny days, this charming hotspot fills up quickly.

Verkoeijen, who once ran a gardening business, is particularly fond of the garden. “The trees here are unique for courtyards in Maastricht”, he says. “There’s a Japanese ginkgo tree, for example, which may have been growing here for as long as 90 years. There are also beautiful old lime trees, chestnut trees and catalpas.”

Just around the corner from the courtyard garden lies another hidden treasure: a smaller garden that was completely renovated in 2026. It is a secluded space filled with flowers and even has an allotment garden for staff. To mark the 45th anniversary of LAW, a time capsule was buried here.

To mark the 45th anniversary of LAW, a time capsule was buried in the courtyard garden.

LAW began with the ambition to do things differently. While students today study in monumental buildings steeped in history, the faculty’s founders wanted to break away from traditions.

They succeeded. LAW has grown into a law faculty with a distinctive identity. Across Europe, it is known for its international focus and small-scale, practice-oriented education. This unique combination prepares students to become the lawyers of the future.

Text: Caya Forman
Photography: Joris Hilterman, Laura Knipsael, LAW footage

All stories

The places that make

the Faculty of Law unique

A blank sheet

Breaking with tradition

A grand building with history

Italian inspiration

The relocation of Lady Justice

Huis Hustinx

Windows with a story to tell

The mystery of the memorial plaque

A royal work of art

From ballroom to courtroom

A secret courtyard garden

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