The chair held by Professor Sebastian Heselhaus, M.A., specialises in areas of Swiss law, European law, international law, German law and comparative law. These are consolidated in both teaching and research activities. Relevant topic areas include:

Human rights:
• European Union law
• European Convention on Human Rights
• Migration and law
• Swiss Constitution
• German Basic Law

Environmental law:
• Swiss environmental law (comparative)
• European Union law
• International law
• German environmental law

Commercial law:
• European Union law
• World Trade Organization law
• Risk regulation

Professor Heselhaus offers courses at Bachelor’s and Master’s level in Swiss public law (basic rights and state organisation law), comparative public law, European law and international economic law. He also teaches annual seminars on current legal issues relating to the development of basic rights or of Swiss environmental law in the context of international comparative law.

In addition, for several years he has successfully overseen the European Law Moot Court on European law and the ELSA European Human Rights Moot Court on International law. In recent years, University of Lucerne students have been able to gain a thorough grounding in oral skills and to present their knowledge and abilities to extremely highly qualified and well-respected experts in these fields of law.

Since October 2015, Professor Sebastian Heselhaus has headed the Lucerne Academy for Human Rights Implementation. The Lucerne Academy for Human Rights Implementation is a three-week summer school for law students and practitioners, organised in conjunction with the international law school at the University of Lucerne’s School of Law.

The interdisciplinary Center for Law and Sustainability (CLS) promotes research relating to ‘law and sustainability’ within the faculty and enables cross-university exchange with the disciplines of economics, social sciences, political science and philosophy.