Van der Heijden obtained his LLM degree from the University of Amsterdam in 1974, and his PhD degree from Leiden University in 1984. His dissertation was entitled Fair trial in labour law (Kluwer, 1984). Van der Heijden has been active as an academic, executive, and judge/arbitrator. Soon after obtaining his doctoral degree, he became a judge at the Amsterdam District Court of Law. In 1990, he was appointed professor of labour law at the University of Amsterdam, where he became Rector in 2002. In 2007, he returned to Leiden University, where he was appointed President and Rector of the university. In February 2013 Van der Heijden was succeeded by Carel Stolker.
Intellectual Interests and Research
Van der Heijden’s academic publications focus on fundamentals of labour law, industrial relations, corporate governance, and public government. His publications appeared in both Dutch and international outlets. For example, together with European colleagues (e.g., Alain Supiot and Peter Hanau), he published Beyond employment: Changes in work and the future of labour law in Europe. (Oxford University Press, 2001).
^"Paul van der Heijden" (in Dutch). Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences. Archived from the original on 24 July 2020. Retrieved 13 July 2015.
