George Sarton (1884-1956) was an alumnus of UGent and one of the founding fathers of history of science as an academic discipline. In 1984, Ghent University established the Sarton Chair in History of Science. Every year, the Sarton Committee selects a chair holder and several medal holders. The Sarton Chair for History of Science 2026-27 was awarded to Prof. dr. Holger Fleischer.
Holger Fleischer is a Director of the Max Planck Institute for Comparative and International Private Law in Hamburg, a position he has held since 2009. He ranks among the most distinguished scholars of corporate law in Europe and internationally. His academic standing is reflected in the two honorary doctorates he has received, from Paris Descartes University and Radboud University Nijmegen, as well as in the prestigious German Leibniz Prize, sometimes referred to as the “German Nobel Prize,” which was awarded to him in 2008. At the Max Planck Institute, he has developed and led ambitious multi-year research programmes addressing fundamental questions in corporate law.
Drawing on Holger Fleischer’s research programme on 300 years of corporate scandals, his inaugural lecture examines how spectacular corporate failures become catalysts for legal and regulatory change around the globe. From early financial crises to modern accounting and banking scandals, it identifies recurring patterns of misconduct, public outrage, investigation, and reform. The lecture asks why some scandals trigger lasting legal change while others fade without major consequences, and what this reveals about the dynamics – and limits – of scandal-driven regulation.
When? Thursday, October 22, at 5 p.m.
Where? Kapittelzaal, Meeting Centre De Abt (Lange Kruisstraat 4, 9000 Gent)
Bonus? The lecture will be followed by a reception.
Register here
Professor Fleischer was nominated for the Sarton Chair by the Faculty of Law and Criminology (collega proximus: prof. dr. Hans De Wulf)
