The rights of asylum seekers and refugees are under pressure. Not only in the Netherlands, the latest development being the new coalition’s Outline Agreement, but also in the rest of Europe. Interest groups advocating on behalf of asylum seekers and refugees are therefore increasingly seeking refuge in the courts. Indeed, the law offers many points of reference for protection through the judicial process: European Union law and international and European human rights relating to asylum are mostly not respected in European countries. A well-known recent example is the VluchtelingenWerk (Refugee Council) case about the reception centre in Ter Apel. Using the law to achieve your goal in this way is called strategic litigation. This litigation happens in Europe at national and international levels, for example on climate, against arms exports, against discrimination, and on migration. In asylum law, several important court cases at national and European level have come about with the influence of interest groups. This PhD research looked at why and how interest groups use strategic litigation. By comparing organisations from different European countries, it provides insight into this phenomenon. The results of the research say something about the complex political, legal, and organisational context in which strategic litigation takes place.
Kris van der Pas is a postdoc researcher at Tilburg University. Between 2019 and 2024, she wrote her PhD thesis at Radboud University. In her PhD defence, Kris conducted interdisciplinary research at the intersection of Political Science and Law on strategic litigation in asylum law. Through a literature review, interviews, case law, and other sources, she has provided insight into a complex political and legal subject. For her PhD research, she visited Italy, Germany, and the UK. She also presented her research at several (inter)national conferences, workshops and symposia. In addition to her PhD thesis, Kris has published on international & European human rights and migration law. In her current position as a postdoc, she conducts research on strategic litigation from the court’s perspective.