School of Public Affairs

Organisational unit: Research School

Organisation profile

Leuphana School of Public Affairs is the academic and professional home to 1.000 bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral students and 31 professors. 30 research associates and 17 professional staff members are working for us.

The main themes of the school are reflected in its study programs: The School of Public Affairs is currently responsible for three Majors and four Minors at Leuphana College, five Master’s programmes and five Doctoral research groups at Leuphana Graduate School as well as five continuing education Master's programmes at Leuphana Professional School. As a novelty in Germany, the Master of Law offers students the opportunity to obtain both a Master's degree in law (LL.M.) as well as the state law examination. With its emphasis on "Law in Context", this model degree programme transcends a classic-dogmatic perspective of jurisprudence by presenting the relevant contents from civil law, public law and criminal law against the backdrop of current societal challenges and transformations. 

Main research areas

Leuphana School of Public Affairs brings together the disciplines of Political Science, Law, and Economics under one roof. With 31 professorships, it establishes an innovative profile in Germany on issues of public affairs, gaining both national and international visibility and academic reputation.

The School conducts research on the major transformations of our time and thus continues to develop its existing research agenda on the future of democracy, evidence-based political decision-making and law in the context of societal transformation. In an interdisciplinary collaborative endeavour, the three subjects will, among other things, answer pressing questions about

  • the legitimacy and performance of democracies, whose integrative power is under threat, especially in light of recent upheavals in politics and society,
  • the role of the state with regard to the relationship between private-law and public-law regulation,
  • the justification of governmental intervention into market processes and their ex-post evaluation.
  1. Published

    Capability and Fair return in European and International Space Cooperation: The Example of Columbus

    Smith, L. J. & Bank, C., 2009, Proceedings of the international Institute of Space Law : 51st Colloquium on the Law of Outer Space; 24th IAA–IISL Scientifi c-Legal Roundtable. Contant Jorgenson, C. M. (ed.). Washington: American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics Inc. (AIAA), p. 25-35 11 p.

    Research output: Contributions to collected editions/worksArticle in conference proceedingsResearch

  2. Published

    Legal Aspects of Commercial Utilisation of the International Space Station – a German Perspective

    Smith, L. J., 01.01.2006, The International Space Station: Commercial Utilisation from a European Legal Perspective. Brus, M. M. T. A. & von der Dunk, F. G. (eds.). 1. ed. Leiden: Nijhoff Publishers, p. 153-179 27 p. (Studies in Space Law; vol. 1).

    Research output: Contributions to collected editions/worksChapterpeer-review

  3. Published

    Constructing the European Space Policy: Past, Present and Future

    Smith, L. J., 2008, Commerce in Space: Infrastructures, Technologies and Applications. Olla, P. (ed.). IGI Global Publishing, p. 187-208 22 p.

    Research output: Contributions to collected editions/worksContributions to collected editions/anthologiesResearch

  4. Published

    Grounding Space: Liability for Commercial Space Operations

    Smith, L. J., 2009, Haftungsrecht im dritten Millennium: Liber Amicorum Gert Brüggemeier; Liability in the Third Millennium . Colombi Ciacchi, A., Godt, C., Rott, P. & Smith, J. (eds.). Baden-Baden: Nomos Verlagsgesellschaft, p. 607-628 22 p. (Schriftenreihe des Zentrums für Europäische Rechtspolitik der Universität Bremen; no. 52).

    Research output: Contributions to collected editions/worksContributions to collected editions/anthologiesResearch

  5. Published

    Rechtliche Fragen der Bereitstellung von Raumfahrtdaten

    Smith, L. J., 2009, Globale Fernerkundungssysteme und Sicherheit: Beiträge durch neue Sicherheitsdienstleistungen. Lingner, S. & Rathgeber, W. (eds.). Europäische Akademie zur Erforschung von Folgen Wissenschaftlich-Technischer Entwicklungen, p. 85-98 14 p. (Graue Reihe; no. 49).

    Research output: Contributions to collected editions/worksArticle in conference proceedingsResearch

  6. Published

    Commentary on Outer Space Treaty 1967: Article VII

    Smith, L. J. & Kerrest, A., 2009, Cologne Commentary on Space Law (CoCoSL). Hobe, S., Schmidt-Tedd, B. & Schrogl, K.-U. (eds.). Köln: Carl Heymanns Verlag, Vol. 1. p. 126-144 19 p.

    Research output: Contributions to collected editions/worksContributions in collection of commentariesResearch

  7. Published

    Geodaten und Datenschutz: Neuer Regelungsbedarf für die Informationsgesellschaft?

    Smith, L. J., 2010, Privatsphäre – gefangen im Netz der Koordinaten: Tagungsband . Der Landesbeauftragte für Datenschutz und Informationsfreiheit Mecklenburg-Vorpommern & Gesellschaft für Datenschutz und Datensicherung e.V. (eds.). p. 586 1 p.

    Research output: Contributions to collected editions/worksArticle in conference proceedingsResearch

  8. Published

    Jurisdiction and applicable law in cases of damage from space in Europe: The advent of the most suitable choice—Rome II

    Smith, L. J. & Doldirina, C., 01.2010, In: Acta Astronautica. 66, 1/2, p. 239-244 6 p.

    Research output: Journal contributionsJournal articlesResearch

  9. Published

    Facing Up to Third Party Liability for Space Activities: some reflections

    Smith, L. J., 2010, Proceedings of the 52nd Colloquium on the Law of Outer Space. Jorgenson, C. M. (ed.). 1. ed. American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics Inc. (AIAA), Vol. 12. p. 255-263 9 p.

    Research output: Contributions to collected editions/worksArticle in conference proceedingsResearchpeer-review

  10. Published

    Physical Attractiveness, Employment, and Wages

    Pfeifer, C., 2011, Lüneburg: Institut für Volkswirtschaftslehre der Universität Lüneburg, 15 p. (University of Lüneburg working paper series in Economics; no. 201).

    Research output: Working paperWorking papers