Wim Voermans
Voermans (2022)
Born8 october 1961
Zundert
NationalityDutch
CitizenshipThe Netherlands
Occupation(s)Professor of Constitutional and Administrative Law
Academic work
DisciplineConstitutional Law
InstitutionsLeiden University
Notable worksThe Story of Constitutions (2023)
WebsiteWim Voermans

Wim (Wilhelmus Jacobus Maria) Voermans (born 8 October 1961 in Zundert, the Netherlands) is professor of constitutional and administrative law at and distinguished professor of Leiden University in the Netherlands.

Contents

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1 Study and work

2 Bibliography (selection)

3 Trivia/personal

4 External links

1. Study and work

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Wim Voermans studied law at Tilburg University (the Netherlands), where he graduated in constitutional and administrative law and obtained his PhD there in 1995 on a study on computer assisted legislative drafting.[1] While writing that thesis, he worked as an assistant professor of constitutional and administrative law and from 1997 onwards as associate professor there. During that time he broadened his scope and specialized in Dutch, European and comparative constitutional law and legislative issues. Voermans published widely on all off these topics and taught legislative drafting courses to Dutch and EU legislative lawyers[2] and professional drafters throughout the world.[3]

In 2002, Voermans was appointed professor of constitutional and administrative law at Leiden University. There, on 12 September 2003, he gave his inaugural lecture, which dealt with the allocation of public powers and the democratic underpinning of legislation and public regulation. After 2003 he directed his focus to Dutch, European and comparative constitutional law, working closely with foreign scholars and practioners, for instance in the International Association for Legislation. He was president of this Association between 2012 and 2015.

After 2015, Voermans shifted his research and teaching focus somewhat. He became increasingly interested in legitimacy issues in law and politics. Together with other Leiden researchers he worked in and led (together with Ruud Koole – political science – and Henk te Velde -history) the Leiden University interdisciplinary profile area Political Legitimacy. Partly as a result of the work in this interdisciplinary programme, he published several books in which the legitimizing function of constitutional law and the omnipresent democratic liberal systems in the world are key. Some of these books, like The Story of the Constitutions: Searching for the We in Us (Cambridge University Press 2023) – originally written in Dutch (Verhaal van de grondwet 2019) - and Onze Constitutie (Our Constitution) (Prometheus 2023) were written for wide audiences. They were favorably received and yielded rave reviews.[4] Our Constitution won the best political book of the year 2023 prize in the Netherlands (Prinsjesboekenprijs) and The Story of the Constitutions won the Book of the Year Award 2023 from the Constitutional Studies Program from the Law School of Texas University (Austin USA).

In addition to teaching and conducting research, Voermans also actively participates in Dutch public debates on constitutional and political issues. He is a vocal promotor of transparency, open government, and better public information provision, which make him a welcome and frequent guest on Dutch radio and television news programmes and talk shows.

On 1 September 2024 Voermans was appointed as distinguished professor of Leiden University.

2. Bibliography (selection)

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• Wim Voermans (2023) The Story of Constitutions: Discovering the We in Us. Cambridge/New York, Cambridge University Press, 389 p. (October 2023) Book of the Year Award from the Constitutional Studies Program from the Law School of Texas University (Austin USA)

• But J.J., Jongkind D.K. & Voermans W.J.M. (2023), ‘Direct democracy in the constitution: good or bad for democracy?’, The Theory and Practice of Legislation 11(1): 52-82.

• Voermans W.J.M. (2022), ‘Constitutional law: (Chapter 5)’, in: Herik L.J. van den, Hondius E.H. & Voermans W.J.M. (red.), Introduction to Dutch Law. Deventer: Wolters Kluwer. 69-122.

• Voermans W.J.M. (2021), ‘Trust as a cornerstone of enacted law’, in: De Benedetto M., Lupo N. & Rangone N. (red.), The Crisis of Confidence in Legislation. International Association of Legislation (IAL) nr. 19. Oxford: Nomos/Hart. 285-306.

• Voermans W.J.M., Stremler M. & Cliteur P.B. (2017), Constitutional Preambles: A Comparative Analysis. Elgar Monographs in Constitutional and Administrative Law. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar. For the extended bibliography, see Voermans' Leiden webpage.

3. Trivia/personal

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Voermans is a committed and competitive long distance runner: he won the silver medal at the Dutch Championships M40 marathon October 28, 2001 in 2h 37 min, came in as the second best Dutch M40 competitor on April 21, 2002 Fortis Marathon Rotterdam in a time of 2h 35 min, Dutch champion M55 NK marathon TCS Amsterdam marathon October 16, 2016, 1st place 10 miles Van Dam tot Dam loop 17 September 2017 in 1h and 36 seconds and bronze during the Dutch Championship marathon M55 15 October 2017 T CS marathon Amsterdam in a time of 2h 56 min.

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Webpage Voermans, Department of Constitutional and Administrative Law Leiden University

  1. ^ The thesis, A study into the possibilities of computer assisted legislative drafting (original title: ‘Sturen in de mist maar dan met radar’) was published with Tjeenk Willink: Zwolle 1995.
  2. ^ Between 2000 and 2005, Voermans, together with Willem Konijnenbelt, organised and provided a three-day course in legislative drafting for the staff of the European Parliament about 3 times a year.
  3. ^ A.o. in New Orleans USA, Washington USA, Paramaribo Suriname, Willemstad Curaçao, London UK, Amman Jordan, Tbilisi Georgia, Cairo Egypt, Rabat, Morocco, Ankara, Turkey, Chisinau Moldova, Cape Town South Africa, Brasilia Brazil, St. Petersburg/Novgorod Russia, Seoul South Korea.
  4. ^ E.g. Ran Hirschl &Nicholas Slawny ‘Three takes on comparative constitutional history’, Comparative Legal History, Vol 12(1) 2024, p. 80-100; Mark Rush, ‘The Story of Constitutions: Discovering the We In Us’, Law and Politics Book Review, Vol. 34(4) (July 2024), p. 36-40 (and – in Dutch – a.o. Jensma, Folkert, ‘Dit kolossale naslagwerk over de grondwet kun je lezen voor je lol', NRC, 20 april 2023; Vermeulen, Frank, ‘Staatsrechtgeleerde Wim Voermans: ‘Een grondwet ís literatuur’, [Handelsblad], 12 september 2019).