Inauguration of the Max Planck Institute Luxembourg for International, European and Regulatory Procedural Law

The UIHJ was in attendance and was represented by Marc Schmitz (Belgium), member of the board.

The new Institute is the first Max Planck Institute on legal matters outside the German borders. It owes its existence to the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg which finances the Institute entirely, as a part of a broader strategy of the local government to develop Luxembourg as a center for academic excellence and higher education.

The location in Luxembourg is ideal for a Max Planck Institute focusing on procedural law: Luxembourg is indeed the synonym for the constant development and expansion of the legal systems of the EU Member States by means of European law and of the jurisprudence of the Court of Justice of the European Union.

The ceremony began with opening remarks addressed by the following authorities:
•    Professor Peter Gruss, President of the Max Planck Society
•    Martine Hansen, Minister for Higher Education and Research, Luxembourg
•    Cornelia Quennet-Thielen, State Secretary at the Federal Ministry of Education and Research, Germany
•    Professor Rolf Tarrach, President of the University of Luxembourg
•    Viviane Reding, Vice-President of the European Commission and Commissioner for Justice, Fundamental Rights and Citizenship (by means of a video message)

After these opening remarks, the Institute was presented by Professor Wolfgang Schön, Vice-President of the Max Planck Society, and by Professor Burkhard Hess, founding and executive director of the Institute and also a member of the Scientific Council of the UIHJ.

On the eve of the opening ceremony, the Institute organized an opening symposium on "Dispute Resolution and Law Enforcement in the Financial Crisis".

Further information about the Max Planck Institute Luxembourg by visiting the

.