Samantha Besson

Samantha Besson is a Professor at Collège de France (Chair: International Law of Institutions) and a Part-Time Lecturer at the University of Fribourg, specializing in Public International Law and European Law. She has held visiting professorships at Harvard, Columbia Law School, and others, and was a Research Fellow at the Wissenschaftskolleg zu Berlin.

• Education: University of Fribourg (Bachelor/Master/Doctorate), Oxford (Magister Juris), Bern (Habilitation)

Research interests focus on the intersection of international law and legal philosophy, including human rights law, international responsibility, comparative constitutional law, and democratic theory. Her work analyzes the legitimacy of international institutions and the role of states in global governance.

Scientific awards:

• Chevalière de l'Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur (2021)
• Honorary Doctorate, Catholic University of Louvain (2024)

Leadership roles: Co-Chair of the ILA Study Group on the International Law of Regional Institutions, member of the Swiss Academy of Human and Social Sciences, and delegate for Human Rights at the Swiss Academies of Sciences.