Tackling the environmental crises while ensuring a just transition to sustainable societies
Achieving the universal realization of human rights, which includes access to safe and affordable housing, nutrition, water security and healthcare, and reproductive health
Addressing systemic racism, including the racial legacies of slavery and colonialism
These societal challenges mainly involve legal obligations of states, but also of private actors. Understanding the potential for mobilizing these obligations is the core aim of the Legal Mobilization Platform (LMP).
A Legal Mobilization Platform: Why, what and how?
The Platform supports and strengthens impactful, legitimate forms of legal mobilization and those involved in them in the fields of climate, racial and socio-economic justice, thus strengthening legal certainty, the rule of law and, ultimately, systemic justice.
It strengthens legal mobilization in different ways:
Enhancing impact
International legal agreements made by states in the field of climate, racial and socio-economic justice and related national laws are not always implemented by these states in accordance with the standards set by human rights treaty bodies and other supervisory organs. How can legal mobilization resolve this lack of implementation and promote accountability and how can we better understand the institutional dimensions at local, national and international levels?
Research within the LMP focuses specifically on assessing impact, synthesizing the critical literature in this field, helping to develop methodological approaches and drawing on action research data and the input from societal partners to develop a theory of how to strengthen the impact of legal mobilization in different fields, directed towards systemic justice.
Enhancing legitimacy
The political dimension of legal mobilization, whereby organizations explicitly recognize and engage with relations of power and embedded interests, tends not to be addressed in the choice of specific legal mobilization strategies, thus risking (a perception of) illegitimacy.
Researchers within the LMP synthesize literature on assessing normative and social legitimacy, developing various legal and empirical research methods, to subsequently draw upon action research data and other input from societal partners to understand how the legitimacy of various forms of legal mobilization in different fields can be strengthened.
Strengthening the rule of law
In its ideal form, legal mobilization strengthens the rule of law (Rechtsstaat), in ensuring that the government abides by the rule of law. The rule of law itself serves to protect the rights of minorities, safeguards the independence of institutions within the trias politica, and protects the security of those involved in deliberative democracy. It is precisely because legal mobilization may potentially undermine positions of power and privilege that legal mobilizers may be under threat, thus triggering a need for legal protection.
Researchers within the LMP synthesize literature on the role of legal defenders in strengthening the rule of law as a whole, also drawing upon action research data and other input from societal partners to create insight on potential ways of supporting legal defenders while strengthening the rule of law as a whole.
Fostering joint learning
There is significant potential for joint learning between practitioners and academics on strategies of legal mobilization in considering their impact, legitimacy and relevance to the rule of law.
To harness this potential, the LMP utilizes a pedagogical learning approach that is critically-reflexive (Jessop and Knio 2019), exploring the multiple factors that contribute to societal and political dilemmas. This approach is designed to provide strategically-important insights into how the law may respond to and, above-all, respond to and manage situations of crisis.
What the LMP does
The Platform's initial set of activities include:
- Coordinate Platform-level activities and organizational affairs of the consortium
- Seek out material support for the LMP-related research and other projects of members of the Consortium
- Host events, including seminars, conferences, expert meetings and capacity-building workshops
- Support a network of PhD researchers and early-career scholars
- Share knowledge and resources
Interdisciplinary international Platform
The Platform consists of a dynamic set of societal partners, working together with academic partners.
It is hosted at the International Institute of Social Studies within the Crisis, Politics and Law Academic Team.
The LMP supports both academic researchers and practitioners, actively encourages a dialogue between them and serves as an innovative, co-creation incubator of ideas. It facilitates support to its participating members, especially to early-career researchers and practitioners.
Establishing accountability for implementing relevant obligations of states and private actors holds the potential to substantially contribute to climate, racial and socioeconomic justice.
Against this backdrop, the work of the LMP centres on the question:
How can we understand and strategically strengthen various forms of legal mobilization, and those who engage in it, in order to address key accountability challenges at the local and global levels, in ways that are impactful, legitimate and supportive of the rule of law, and ultimately contribute to systemic justice?
Legal mobilization is aimed at challenging existing power structures and therefore requires deliberate, strategic, bold and innovative approaches
LMP outputs
2026
Realizing Palestinian Self-Determination and State Sovereignty: What Next?
13 February 2026 | Conference
Co-organized with Birzeit University, this conference examined legal and political pathways toward Palestinian self-determination and state sovereignty. Participants reflected on developments in international law, accountability mechanisms, and prospects for a just and durable peace.
2025
Gender Justice in International Criminal Law Conference
29–30 September 2025 | International Conference
LMP, the Women’s Initiative for Gender Justice, and the Gender Justice Practitioner Hub co-organized a two-day conference gathering survivors, activists, academics, and legal practitioners from around the world to discuss gender justice in international criminal law. 100 key actors working in the field of Gender Justice were brought together. Through dynamic dialogue and shared strategies, they advanced feminist and intersectional legal approaches that moved beyond rhetoric into action. Report
Conference on Protest and Legal Mobilization in Oñati, Spain
3–4 April 2025 | Conference
This 2-day conference brought together scholars examining protest movements, legal mobilization, civic space, and contemporary forms of resistance. It was organized by Erasmus School of Law; Universidad del PaÃs Vasco (UPV/EHU); Oñati International Institute for the Sociology of Law.
2024
Reproductive Violence in International Criminal Law
June 2024 | Conference
The Platform partnered with Women's Initiatives for Gender Justice and other organizations to convene discussions on reproductive violence within international criminal law. The conference examined legal accountability, survivor-centred approaches, and emerging challenges in the field of gender justice.
Protest Under Pressure Conference
25 January 2024 | Conference
The Legal Mobilization Platform and Tilburg University Law School organized this conference that brought together academics, lawyers, activists, and civil society organizations to examine growing restrictions on protest rights and shrinking civic space in democratic and authoritarian contexts. Discussions explored legal responses to repression, strategic litigation, and the role of solidarity networks in protecting the right to protest.
2026
Monarchies of Extraction: The Gulf States in the Global Food System
21 May 2026 | Book Launch
This Development Research Seminar organized by the Legal Mobilization Platform and the Agrifood and Water Technologies Academic Team, Dr Christian Henderson presents his latest book Monarchies of Extraction: The Gulf States in the Global Food System. The event explored food systems, extraction, agrarian politics, and the role of Gulf States within the global political economy.
The Legal Advocacy on De-Pathologizing Homosexuality
30 April 2026 | Panel Discussion
Marking the twenty-fifth anniversary of the de-pathologization of homosexuality in China, this panel explored the role of legal advocacy, strategic litigation, and social mobilization in advancing LGBTQ+ rights. The discussion situated developments in China within broader international debates on equality and legal reform. This panel was organized by the LMP and Chinese Initiative on International Law.
2025
People’s Tribunal for Women of Afghanistan
December 2025 | Public Tribunal
The Platform collaborated with the People’s Tribunal for Women of Afghanistan (PTWA) and the Women’s International Justice Group (WIJG) to host at the International Institute of Social Studies (ISS) in The Hague the closing event of the Tribunal, including the public reading of the Judgment on 11 December 2025. The event highlighted violations of women’s rights under Taliban rule and explored pathways toward accountability and justice, bringing together representatives from international organisations, academia, civil society, and the Afghan community.
Intersectional Rewrites: European Court of Human Rights Judgments Reimagined
25 November 2025 | Book Launch
The Legal Mobilization Platform hosted the launch of the book Intersectionality and Human Rights: Reimagining European Court of Human Rights Judgments, edited by Nani Jansen Reventlow and the contributors to the Intersectional Rewrites Project. The volume brings together twelve European Court of Human Rights judgments rewritten through an intersectional lens by activists, practitioners, and academics. The event explored the project's contribution to rethinking human rights jurisprudence and addressing intersecting forms of discrimination.
Palestine Through Art and Reflections
3 October 2025 | Art Exhibition
This exhibition, organized by PAX; Amnesty International, and ceramic artist Mary Ann Jaraisy, highlighted Palestinian experiences, resilience, and lived realities through artistic expression. The exhibition provided a space for reflection, dialogue, and public engagement around issues of justice, memory, and representation with ceramic artist Mary Ann Jaraisy and the Cmunity Action Center - Al-Quds University.
Borders and Belonging: Toward a Fair Immigration Policy
12 June 2025 | Book Launch
This event featured Hiroshi Motomura’s book Borders and Belonging, which offers a nuanced examination of immigration, belonging, and policy responses to migration.
Organizing partners: UCLA Law’s Promise Institute for Human Rights Europe, UCLA Center for Immigration Law and Policy.
Justice in Times of Artificial Intelligence
21 May 2025 | Annual Lecture
The 2nd International Humanitarian Studies Association (IHSA) Annual Lecture with Judge Fergal M. Gaynor explored the implications of artificial intelligence, technology, and accountability in relation to conflict crimes. This event was organized by The Hague Humanitarian Studies Centre; KUNO Platform; International Humanitarian Studies Association.
Children in Armed Conflict
1 April 2025 | Panel Discussion
The event, organized by LPM, Save the Children Netherlands and The Hague Humanitarian Studies Centre, brought together leading experts, including Ann Skelton, Chair of the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child (2023–2025), to examine the role of humanitarian organizations, international institutions, and legal actors in protecting children affected by armed conflict. Discussions explored accountability mechanisms and legal strategies for advancing children's rights.
Francesca Albanese at Erasmus University Rotterdam
14 February 2025 | Public Lecture
Francesca Albanese, United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian Territory occupied since 1967, delivered a public lecture addressing developments in Gaza, international law, and the responsibilities of states and international organizations.
2024
Gaza at the ICC: Seeking Justice for Palestinian Displacement amid Genocide
3 December 2024 | Panel Discussion
The Legal Mobilization Platform, International Human Rights Clinic at Boston University and the International Centre of Justice for Palestinians, Al-Haq Europe, Al-Haq Organization organized a side event during the Assembly of States Parties to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court. The discussion examined the denial of Palestinians' right to return under international criminal law and explored legal avenues for accountability in the context of displacement and ongoing violence in Gaza. The event brought together academics, practitioners, and human rights advocates.
South Africa's Genocide Case Against Israel
12 January 2024 | Public Briefing
Briefing session on the potential implications of South Africa’s case before the International Court of Justice for the ongoing military conflict in Gaza. Four experts of international law, human rights, and legal mobilization discussed South Africa’s case and its implications for ending the ongoing military conflict in Gaza through a ceasefire, the provision of humanitarian assistance and accountability questions.
Intersectional Rewrites Workshop
20–22 February 2024 | Workshop
Hosted at ISS, this workshop co-organized with Systemic Justice brought together contributors to the Intersectional Rewrites project. Participants explored how judgments of the European Court of Human Rights might be reimagined through intersectional approaches to justice and legal reasoning.
2023
Launch of the Legal Mobilization Platform: Mobilizing for a Just World
13 January 2023 | Launch Event
The Legal Mobilization Platform was officially launched in The Hague. Bringing together scholars, practitioners, activists, and students, the event introduced the Platform’s mission of advancing collaboration around legal mobilization, strategic litigation, and social justice. Discussions addressed climate justice, racial justice, socio-economic rights, and community-led legal action.
Protest Under Pressure Workshop
May 2023 | Workshop
This workshop, co-organized with Tilburg University, explored restrictions on protest rights and the legal dimensions of shrinking civic space. It laid important foundations for the larger Protest Under Pressure conference organized the following year.
Resisting Israeli Settler Colonialism
2023 | Public Event
During Israeli Apartheid Week 2023, organized every March, Dutch Scholars for Palestine and the Legal Mobilization Platform organized a panel titled Resisting Settler Colonialism at ISS. The panellists discussed the ways in which citizens are both confronted with and are resisting a range of international crimes arising from Israel’s long-standing regime of settler-colonialism, as well as how the Palestinian struggle relates to other, intersectional struggles and forms of resistance. The intersectionality of struggles was specifically emphasized by the panellists from the climate movement and racial justice movement.
Book Talk with Hil Aked
October 2023 | Public Event
The Platform, Dutch Scholars for Palestine and SCHOLAS (the student association at ISS) organized a book talk at the ISS with Dr Hil Aked, who had published their book, Friends of Israel: The Backlash Against Palestine Solidarity, earlier that year. The conversation explored legal and political challenges facing Palestine solidarity movements and examined the role of advocacy in contested political environments.
Yemen Justice Network Meeting
June 2023 | Expert Meeting
The LMP partnered with the Yemen Justice Network to host a meeting at the ISS. On the sidelines of the Second Yemen International Forum – the largest annual conference for Yemeni dialogue – the Legal Mobilization Platform hosted a convention that gathered Yemeni victims groups, civil society and international diplomats seeking to discuss matters of transitional justice in Yemen. ISS provided a safe environment for these relevant talks to take place.
2025
Thai Training Programme: Legal Culture and Inclusion in the Courtroom
8 July 2025 | Training Programme
The Platform contributed to a training programme for members of the Thai judiciary reflecting about, inclusive and sustainable development. The programme combined lectures, institutional visits, and exchanges with Dutch and international organizations.
Challenges of Academia in Palestine
10–18 May 2025 | Academic Exchange
The Legal Mobilization Platform hosted a delegation from Birzeit University as part of the Mobility+ Project. The visit explored challenges facing Palestinian higher education and opportunities for international academic collaboration.
2023
Delegation to South Africa
February 2023 | Partnership Development
A delegation that consisted of colleagues from the Legal Mobilization Platform, the ISS, the Netherlands Institute of Human Rights and Al-Haq, travelled to South Africa. Visited universities, legal clinics, civil society organizations, and public institutions across South Africa. The delegation sought to strengthen international partnerships and explore opportunities for collaborative teaching, research, and public engagement.
Palestine Partnerships and Al-Haq Summer School
June 2023 | Capacity Building and Partnership Development
Representatives of the Platform visited Birzeit University and participated in the Al-Haq Summer School. The visit strengthened ties with Palestinian academic institutions and legal practitioners while facilitating knowledge exchange around legal mobilization and human rights advocacy.
2025 | Ongoing Project
Reproductive Rights and the Transnational Dynamics of Legal Mobilization (REPRO-NETS)
2025–2027 | Marie Curie Research Project
Led by Dr Karolina Kocemba, the Reproductive Rights and the Transnational Dynamics of Legal Mobilization (REPRO-NETS) project examines how conservative and progressive non-state networks influence reproductive rights in Europe through strategic uses of law.
The project adopts a comparative and transnational approach to understanding legal mobilization. It investigates both "high-profile" legislation and court judgements and "low-profile" laws (e.g. healthcare regulations and WHO guidelines); explores and compares pro-life and pro-choice legal strategies and tactics; and examines cross-border and transnational processes and knowledge transfers.
The findings will provide new insights into the legal strategies driving reproductive rights changes at national, European and global levels.
The 2-year (2025–2027) project is funded by the European Union as part of its Horizon Marie Curie programme.
More details of the REPRO-NETS
2024 | Finalized projects
Research Commission on Colonial Dehumanization
2024 | Research and Partnership Initiative
In collaboration with partners including the Black Jacobins, the Platform contributed to efforts to develop a research commission on colonial dehumanization and slavery. The initiative explored questions of historical accountability, public memory, and reparative justice.
2026
Law, Dispossession, and Plunder in Black Homeownership
In this episode we host a conversation with Professor Bernadette Atuahene, led by Dr. Jeff Handmaker, on the findings of her latest book, Plundered: How Racist Policies Undermine Black Homeownership in America. The discussion explores how legal and administrative systems governing property taxation have functioned as mechanisms of racialized wealth extraction in the U.S.
2025
Advancing Substantive Equality in South Africa
October 2025 | Podcast
In this episode, we feature a conversation with Dr. Thandiwe Matthews, hosted by Dr. Jeff Handmaker. Drawing from Dr. Matthews’ doctoral research, Advancing Substantive Equality in South Africa: Elite Contestations Surrounding Constitutionalism, Gender, and the Right to Social Assistance, the discussion explores how legal ideals of equality intersect with the realities of power, politics, and policy.
2024
The UN, International Law, and the Question of Palestine
This episode examines the legal and political dynamics surrounding Palestine’s engagement with international law, focusing on Ardi Imseis' book, The United Nations and the Question of Palestine: Rule by Law and the Structure of International Legal Subalternity. Moderated by Jeff Handmaker, the discussion with international law experts Ardi Imseis, Giulia Pinzauti, and Melissa O'Donnell explores how the United Nations has historically approached the question of Palestine, the legal mechanisms it has employed, and the shifting standards that have shaped Palestinian legal claims.
Academic Boycott as Legal Mobilization
We share a thought-provoking and timely Teach-In recorded at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam on 13 March 2024. Scholars Omar Barghouti, Pepijn Brandon, Gloria Wekker, and Jeff Handmaker explore the role of academic boycotts as a tool for justice—drawing connections between the Palestinian-led BDS movement and historical precedents like the boycott of apartheid South Africa
2024 | Untold stories of occupied Palestine webinar series with UN Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese
- Untold stories about occupied Palestine #1 | October 7: Terrorism or National Liberation Movement?
- Untold stories about occupied Palestine #2 | Is it genocide?
- Untold stories about occupied Palestine #3 | The International Criminal Court: Justice denied?
- Untold stories of occupied Palestine #4 | The ICJ: South Africa v. Israel'
2023 | Launching of the Legal Mobilization Platform
2026 | Student discussion between Dr Jeff Handmaker and students Osama Al Shamleh and Emmylou Savage
Making Sense of the Genocide in Gaza - Staff-student discussion in DevISSues (Vol. 28 No. 1)
2018-2025 | Legal Mobilization Series in BLISS
The following articles are a selection of LMP Members’ contributions to the ISS Blog BLISS
2025 | Report on the Book Launch Borders and Belonging: Towards a Fair Immigration Policy with Professor Hiroshi Motomura
Written by: Annaliese Herms, Ani Shvelidze, Shahjahan Tahir, LMP interns 2025
2025 | Report Children in Armed Conflict: The Protective Role of the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child and Other Institutional Responses
Written by Daniela Raad and Lee Anne de la Hunt
2024 | Report on the Protest Under Pressure Conference
Written by Madeleine Walker and Joaquin Fuentealba, LMP consultants 2024
2023 | Report on the Protest Under Pressure workshop
Written by Marthe Heringa, LMP coordinator 2023
2023 | Special Issue on Legal Mobilization
Published in the Journal of Human Rights Practice, this Special Focus on Legal Mobilization brings together contributions examining the role of law, legal actors, and legal strategies in advancing social change, human rights, and justice.
Journal of Human Rights Practice, Vol. 15 (2023), pp. 1–5.
Introduction to the Legal Mobilization Special Focus.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/jhuman/huac068
Organization and Collaboration
The LMP is a collaborative platform which is non-hierarchical in its decision-making processes, supported by:
- the Platform coordinator, Madeleine Walker is based at International Institute of Social Studies (ISS) of Erasmus University Rotterdam in The Hague.
- an Advisory board comprised of:
Professor Jackie Dugard (South Africa)
Affiliate, Center for Human Rights and Global Justice, NYU School of Law; Institute for the Study of Human Rights, Columbia University; Founder and former director of the Socio-Economic Rights Institute of South Africa (SERI); Visiting Professor in Law at the University of Witwatersrand, South Africa).
Professor Miloon Kothari (India)
Former UN Special Rapporteur on adequate housing (2000-2008); President of UPR-Info; Commissioner (appointed in 2021) with the UN Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and Israel; visiting professor at the Graduate Institute, Geneva.
Professor Ambreena Manji (Kenya)
Professor of Land Law and Development, School of Law and Politics, University of Cardiff; Former director of the British Institute in Eastern Africa (BIEA) in Nairobi, Kenya (2010-14); Former President of the African Studies Association (2018-2020); Editor of African Affairs and Socio-Legal Studies: An International Journal.
Professor Gloria Wekker (The Netherlands)
Amnesty International Chair of Human Rights, University of Gent; Professor Emerita in Gender Studies, Utrecht University; Co-founder of De Zwarte Jacobines that produced De Zwart Manifest (Dutch only); Author (among many other publications) of White innocence: Paradoxes of colonialism and race.
Consortium members
The Platform supports an interdisciplinary consortium, ensuring that the LMP incorporates the breadth of knowledge and diversity needed to address a wide range of challenges.
This list provides a list of consortium members with their contact details.
The Legal Mobilization Platform can host fellows, both scholars and practitioners, for a short period of time, provided they can cover their own expenses.
Current LMP fellows:
- Dr Hadeel Abu Hussein (2021-2022) – Land rights in Palestine, in critical and comparative perspective
- Mr Ahmed Abofoul (2022-2023) – International law and legal mobilization in relation to Palestine
- Dr Ayhan Isik (2021-2023) – Legal mobilization in relation to paramilitary groups in Turkey, and in comparative perspective
Interested in finding out more about fellowship opportunities? Please contact us at: LMP@iss.nl
The work of the Platform is organized along:
- Co-ordination and coherence: Running the LMP, ensuring that all projects address key analytical entry points
- Analytical entry-points: Impact, legitimacy, rule of law certainty and – ultimately – radical equality / systemic justice
- PhD projects: These scholars, who address different forms of legal mobilization in academic-societal partnerships will be supported through networks, workshops and mentorship
- Impact accelerators: Specific actions and persons to ensure optimal impact, including thematic co-ordination, promotion of law clinics and clinic-based legal education, legal mobilization workshops and handbook
- Societal partners: Both Dutch and international partners who have made in-kind co-funding contributions
- Cooperation partners: Both Dutch and international partners who will make incidental contributions
Collaborate with us!
- Email address
- LMP@iss.nl
About the header image
Wittgenstein (1892) – Visualizing the interplay of law and politics to transition from conflict to cooperation. 'To persist in asking the question "but is the jurist or the politician right?" is like asking whether the image really is that of a rabbit or a duck. All depends on the background assumptions against which we examine the image, the vocabulary through which we try to grasp its meaning.' (Koskenniemi 2019:27)