Dr JS Kortmann (1974) has been named professor by special appointment of Special topics in private law in the Faculty of Law of the Universiteit van Amsterdam (UvA). This chair has been created by the MH Bregstein Foundation.

Jeroen Kortmann obtained his doctorate from the University of Oxford with a thesis on liability for nonfeasance and negotiorum gestio. Since 2002 he has practiced as a lawyer for the Stibbe law firm in Amsterdam, for which he was detached to Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP in New York from 2005 to 2006. In his legal practice, Kortmann advises and litigates primarily on issues of national and international liability, in relation to which he has acted for accountants, banks and directors, among others.

Kortmann has taught at various institutions including the Universiteit van Groningen, the University of Oxford (Roman law) and the Radboud Universiteit in Nijmegen (Anglo-American law). He is the author of several publications, chiefly on the subject of tort law. In addition, he has published on private law aspects of the trade in CO2 emissions. His book Altruism in Private Law, which is an adaptation of his doctoral thesis, was published by Oxford University Press in 2005. In the December 2006 special edition of the journal Nederlands Juristenblad, this book was recognized as one of the five best books of the 21st century in the area of legal history and comparative law. As a professor, Kortmann will conduct further research on international aspects of private law, in particular of tort law. Kortmann will teach the subject of European Tort Law.