PhD researcher Legal reasoning and transparency in the context of ‘open’ administrative decision-making

The Department of Public Law and Governance has a vacancy for a legal PhD Researcher who has a strong interest in the (legal) consequences of open government for transparency and reasoning in administrative single-case decision-making. Are you eager to discover how open government can transform reasoning and  transparency rights in administrative single-case decision-making in a digital era? And do you want to join a promising and multidisciplinary team with young and leading scholars in the field? Then this will be the ideal PhD project for you!

Your position

Tilburg Law School is seeking an enthusiastic colleague for the position of a legal PhD researcher on the topic of ‘open’ administrative decision-making in the Department of Public Law and Governance.

Digitalization of government is not only potentially constraining public officials in taking tailormade decisions, it can also enable them to take decisions which are better apt for the particular circumstances at stake. At the same time, the rule of law still requires government decisions to be consistent with other decisions. Existing transparency guarantees make it difficult, if not impossible for citizens to compare their case with other relevant cases and therefore fail to address the need for so-called ‘case-inclusive transparency’. Modern open government legislation can act as a game changer here, as it increasingly requires administrative decisions in single cases to be disclosed publicly to everyone.

Central to this research are the legal effects of public disclosure of administrative single-case decisions to transparency in administrative single-case decision-making. When these single-case decisions become publicly available to everyone, this can drastically transform the process of decision-making. In particular, administrative decision-making will become more comparative (‘case-inclusive’), since citizens are no longer only aware of the applicable legal rule, but also of the way this rule has been applied in other cases. As a result, existing transparency guarantees, such as the right of access to one’s own file and the duty to proper reason-giving, need to be operationalized in a different way. This PhD project therefore aims to analyze in-depth the legal consequences of ‘open’ and therefore ‘comparative’ administrative decision-making, thereby contributing to a reappraisal of the administrative decision as a new and distinct source of law.

This PhD position is part of the research project ‘Case-Inclusive Transparency for a Digital and Open Government’ (CITaDOG), which is funded by the Digital Sciences for Society program of Tilburg University, and of the NWO Vidi project ‘Administrative Decision-Making in Times of Open Government: from Rule to Case Transparency’ (2024-2028). CITaDOG consists of a multidisciplinary team of researchers (law, public administration, computer science, social psychology) and is supported by different collaborating partners representing both the government and the citizen perspective. You will be one of the four PhD candidates within the research team and will be supervised by inspiring scholars from different disciplines. For more information on CITaDOG, check https://www.tilburguniversity.edu/about/digital-sciences-society/projects/case-inclusive-transparency

Requirements:

Tilburg University is curious about how you can contribute to our research, education, impact, and to the team you will be part of. Therefore, we would like to get the best possible picture of your knowledge, insight, skills, and personality. Below you can find the qualifications we consider important for the position.

The candidate:

• has completed a (research) master’s degree in law or any related discipline (or will do so before February 2025);
• has a clear interest in issues of open government, administrative decision-making and/or legal argumentation
• has demonstrated excellent skills in conducting academic research
• has affinity with a positivist approach towards (administrative) law, but is also capable of combining this approach with other legal approaches
• is eager to reach out to other academic disciplines in order to strengthen research in public law
• is enthusiastic to perform research as part of a research team
• is equipped to contribute to the outreach activities of CITaDOG;
• has good writing and communication skills in both Dutch and English. 

To maintain a vibrant and active university community, it is important that we meet each other regularly and that the connection between us remains good. Therefore, the premise is that all staff members carry out their work in the Netherlands and that lecturing is done physically.

Salary Benefits:

What do we offer?

Tilburg University offers excellent benefits in a pleasant working environment: 

For this position, we offer:

• A position based on 0.8 - 1.0 FTE (32-40 hours per week);
• It is a vacancy for 4 years. You will initially be appointed for a fixed period of 16 months with a statutory probationary period of two months. After 12 months, an evaluation will take place. If the performance evaluation is positive, your employment agreement will be extended for the remaining period of 32 months;
• A salary of €2,910 gross per month for full time employment, based on UFO profile PhD Candidate and salary scale P. Tilburg University uses a neutral remuneration system based on relevant education and work experience. 
• Vacation pay (8%) and a year-end bonus (8.3%);
• Vacation days (41 days for a 40-hour work week);
• Full reimbursement of commuting expenses for sustainable travel: walking, biking and public transportation;
• An Options Model in which you exchange benefits for things such as additional leave, more pension, a bicycle or personal training at our Sports Center. 
• A moving allowance (subject to conditions). 
• Employees from abroad may be eligible for a tax-free allowance for extraterritorial expenses equal to 30% of taxable salary.
• A pension with ABP; the most sustainable Dutch pension fund.
• Training in personal development, career development, leadership, education, and research or a language course at our Language Center. 
• A work culture in which we embrace differences, everyone is welcome and given equal opportunities. 
• A vibrant campus in green surroundings that is easily accessible by public transport. 

For more information, see our website and the Collective Labour Agreement of Dutch Universities.

32 - 40 hours per week

Warandelaan 2