International Business Law

After graduating from this IBL Master's programme in Commercial Transactions you are on your first step to big-time deal brokering. You will be armed with the knowledge and skills to set up legally watertight and strategic transactions. This can range from helping set up or expand young companies, to advising and facilitating global multinational mergers and acquisitions.

Corporate lawyers structure deals, draft proposals, negotiate transactions. A transactional lawyer works to ensure that agreements are clear and unambiguous and will not cause problems for their client in the future. Corporate lawyers also advise on the duties and responsibilities of senior executives, directors, and other key company managers. Transactional lawyers give their advice at the very sharp end of the decision-making process. As globalisation has become more complex, the status of international business lawyers within companies has gone up. Many of today's senior C-level executives began their careers as corporate lawyers. It is a fascinating position within a company or governmental organisation which affords an intimate window on the way institutions work and interact with the outside world. The career avenue you personally choose, will depend on your own interests within this fascinating and dynamic field.

Armed with your IBL Master’s programme, you can look forward to a career as a business lawyer, an in-house legal counsel for companies, or as government official, corporate executive, or legal professional for international intergovernmental organisations. The skills and knowledge you acquire on this Master's will put you in a prime position to join major law firms, global accountancy practices, financial institutions and corporations which you admire. Corporate governance, M&A, project finance and venture capital are all next stops for Commercial Transactions Masters graduates.

Or do you want to be part of setting up a new business venture? Entrepreneurs with a knowledge of Commercial Transactions will always be one step ahead, thanks to the competitive advantage which a deep knowledge of International Business Law provides.

Each student may opt for at least three electives during the IBL Commercial Transactions Master’s programme. The elective courses are:

Period 1

• EU Internal Market Law 
• Law and Behavioral Economics 

Period 2

• Fundamental Issues of International Economic Law
• International Tax Law 

Period 4

• Blockchain and Other Disruptive Business-tech: Challenges to the Law 
• Data, Privacy, and Human Rights 
• Competition Law 

Period 5

• International Intellectual Property Law 
• E-Commerce Law 

Consult the study guide for more information.

Some say that to be a successful in-house lawyer in today's organisations, legal training is simply not enough. You will complete this Master's armed with a wide knowledge of the legal principles, coupled with deeper appreciation for other skills and disciplines needed for tomorrow's legal advisors.

You will be able to collaborate with other disciplines in the workplace, or in academic research, due to your wider awareness of concerns outside the "bubble" of the letter of the law. From knowing more about how people behave, to analysing flaws in market regulations.

The course will enable you to carefully consider the impact of your legal decisions in a cultural context. You will learn to think differently about the law.

By better appreciating the role of law in corporate society you will make wiser decisions on behalf of your clients. Your skills and knowledge gained in negotiating, corporate social responsibility, corporate governance and international arbitration will prepare you well for organisations seeking sharp legal minds, but with a wider portfolio of skills.

This broad skill set answers many of the demands which organisations currently demand of in-house lawyers and those seeking careers in financial institutions.

New-school lawyers need new competencies, experience and knowledge compared with their "old-school" counterparts. You will expand your job horizons with this master’s programme, in line with the demands of today's employers.

Corporate and financial lawyers are required to have more contextual, ethical, political and economic awareness than ever before. So the demands of the corporate legal profession are changing, and this master’s programme will better prepare you for a wide variety of future career options than a more traditional "black letter" legal course. If you aim to become an in-house legal advisor to a company, financial institution, or governmental organisation, the wider basis of this programme means you have demonstrated to future employers that you are "not just a lawyer". You are a T-shaped lawyer.

If you successfully graduate from this programme your job prospects will simply skyrocket. Why? In the past, the commercial and the sustainability sectors were separate worlds. Nowadays, these domains have rapidly become intertwined. Businesses see climate change threatening profits. They are therefore behaving as problem owners.

Yet there are very few legal experts who have studied the field of law and climate change. Students who complete this Master’s programme have a distinct competitive advantage. This opens the doors for a wide range of employers, including banks, businesses, government authorities and NGOs.

With this degree, you will be qualified for positions specifically related to climate change. However, you will be equally well-equipped for positions with a more general legal profile.

The master program IBL: Climate Change & Corporations has a partnership with Greenpeace International (GPI). You can do a paid internship at GPI during your studies. There is room for one or two interns per academic year.

Student Daisy Ivanova on her internship at GPI: ‘I had the opportunity to be an active part of Greenpeace International's strategic litigation team, where I was able to help in conducting research on strategic litigation avenues for holding fossil fuel companies accountable for their current and past inaction. I also worked on their misinforming advertising campaigns and participated in meetings about specific cases and strategic plans. I am very grateful to have had the chance to be a part of such a highly skilled and truly warm-hearted team, and would recommend any student who is truly passionate about environmental advocacy and has academic expertise in the legal field to apply for this tremendous opportunity.’

Are you interested in this internship? You can send a motivation letter (in addition to the requested documents for your application) to mrs. Pien Werkman (p.werkman@vu.nl) before June 1. It will be announced no later than 1 July whether you have been selected for the internship.

"This programme is unique at the moment because it offers a well-rounded and profound insight into climate change law. With the small number of students and pleasant atmosphere, everybody can participate in class. By including other fields, such as psychology, sociology, economics and climate science, the programme offers a perspective on law that can be eye-opening to law students, who often develop a tunnel vision during their time in law school. Participating in this programme made me see the law as a tool and showed me many ways in which it can be used to mitigate climate change.”

     - Martyna Bajer (Climate Change and Corporations)

"What intrigued me in the programme was the currently rarely observed combination of business- and climate change law. The former influences the latter, and it is primordial to look for solutions to climate change issues in business reforms. This is why I believe that this programme is essential for future legal practitioners that want to deal with the ever-increasing threat of climate change. The course has so far taught our rather small, yet very invested and motivated class a lot about the psychological and behavioural aspects of consumers' decision-making processes, but also about the scientific, political, and extensively about the legal international state of affairs concerning the climate change issue.”

     - Daisy Ivanova (Climate Change and Corporations)

"This is a highly recommendable LLM programme, with small but interactive classes taught by reputable academics and practitioners. Upon graduation, I had acquired the theoretical and the practical knowledge required to perfectly perform in the business arena as a legal counsel. Everything I had learned during classes became of use during my job and I could see the connection with the requirements and expectations of my position. Personally, the highlight of my year as a student, was my participation in the Willem C. Vis International Commercial Arbitration Moot, offered as an extracurricular course. Together with some of my fellow students, as a team, we got to practice and refine our legal skills solving a complex legal problem, and although it was a fictitious one, it could have very well been real. It was a great opportunity to refine my legal writing skills, as well as my oral advocacy skills, competing against the most reputable universities in the world. A degree in the Commercial Transactions track offers many opportunities for you.” 

     - Wendy Gonzales (Commercial Transactions)

The programme was an inspiring academic experience which provided me with valuable insights into the international and EU law regulating cross-border trade. Its rich curriculum tackles all aspects necessary for developing key legal competencies in international business. Apart from offering a comprehensive understanding of the legal framework in relation to international commercial transactions, the remarkably interesting lectures and seminars prepare students to anticipate and adapt to the dynamics of a legal environment in business. What I also highly value about the programme is the dedication of the teaching staff, top academics, and legal practitioners, who inspire and guide students during their academic journey.

     - Madalina Stavar (Commercial Transactions)

‘The Markets & Behavior program has proved itself a positive experience and especially the diverse character of the master program was something I highly appreciated. I can say that the program prepared me well for entering the labor market, even more so because several courses were taught by lawyers who, if one would be interested in pursuing the opportunity, could provide an opening to enter the market. I am currently working at Deloitte Risk Advisory, at the Regulatory Risk section.’

     - Redmar Poen (Markets & Behavior)

"Not only were the lectures interesting and interactive but they opened my eyes to the interconnectivity and overlap between such subjects as behavior economics, the law, finance and the realm of negotiations. I got to meet people from all different-cross sections of the world and to interact with professors and lecturers of the highest caliber. With my return to the workplace as an in-house legal advisor, what I have found to be most significant about the Markets & Behavior course was its emphasis on skills that are so often ‘pushed under the rug’ in favor of substantive and procedural law – from learning all about the flaws underlying the purpose of market regulations, to understanding what makes people tick, to procuring the best deal in a negotiation for your client. The course and what it had to offer far exceeded my expectations."

     - Georgina McKenzie (Markets & Behavior)