The 10th EAHL Conference and Young Scholars Workshop
“Navigating the Frontiers of Health Law in an Evolving Europe, 9–11 September 2026”
* Photographer Dainis Caune.
The 10th Conference of the European Association of Health Law (EAHL2026) concluded last week at Uppsala University, Sweden, drawing over 200 participants from across Europe and beyond for three days of discussion on how health law must adapt to a rapidly changing continent.
The conference opened on 9 September with welcome remarks from Associate Professor Santa Slokenberga on behalf of the Steering Committee, followed by EAHL President, Professor Stefania Negri (University of Salerno), marking the association's 18th anniversary, an opening lecture from former Professor Elisabeth Rynning on "Human Rights in Biomedicine — Revisiting the Regulatory Toolbox," and remarks from Professor Tom Goffin (Ghent University) on the European Journal of Health Law and its relationship to EAHL.
"Europe evolves – longer lives, not necessarily healthier ones, alongside lifestyle challenges, mental health concerns, migration, and climate pressures," said Santa Slokenberga, Associate Professor of Medical Law at Uppsala University and a member of the conference's steering committee. "We are looking for ways to develop and deploy new technology and regulate it appropriately, while the EU seeks to remain competitive globally without losing sight of the values its health law is grounded in."
With more than 100 oral presentations, over 10 workshops, and 15 posters, the conference's scientific programme spanned a wide range of health law topics, from artificial intelligence and health data governance to reproductive medicine, organ donation, mental health law, and pharmaceutical regulation. This breadth reflected the diversity of challenges facing European health law today, bringing together established scholars and young researchers across disciplines and career stages to engage with both cutting-edge technological developments and long-standing questions of patients' rights and public health ethics.
Keynote contributions were delivered by Professor Timo Minssen (University of Copenhagen), Professor Tamara Hervey (City St George's, University of London), Assistant Professor Pramiti Prawani (University of Warwick Law School), Professor Anniek de Ruijter (University of Amsterdam) and Professor Carl Fredrik Bergström (Uppsala University), highlighting considerations such as the need for coordinated regulation, rather than duplication, and solidarity-versus-charity approaches when crises hit health systems in the EU.
The Young Scholars workshop was co-created by doctoral candidate Cato Deprez (Katholieke Universiteit Leuven), Professor Tamara Hervey (City St George's, University of London) and doctoral candidate Wendy Kwaku Yeboah (University of Bologna), focusing on pitching the research, communicating about methodology, and discussing career experiences with scholars of different seniority.
During the closing session of the conference in Uppsala, Assistant Professor Magdalena Flatscher-Thöni (UMIT TIROL) announced the two winners of the EAHL Young Scholars Poster Prize in health law. Judged by a panel of four, the prize was awarded jointly to Dr. Ani Regina Batangan (University of the Philippines Diliman), for "Medical Negligence in the Philippines and Spain: A Comparative Analysis of Civil and Criminal Liability," and doctoral candidate Maarten Wille (Leiden University), for "Children's Right to Financially Accessible Health Care: A Holistic Human Rights-Based Approach." As both posters received the same score, the € 500 prize was split between the two winners.
About the EAHL2026 Organization
EAHL2026 was organized by Uppsala University in collaboration with the Swedish National Council on Medical Ethics (national co-organizer) and the Nordic Permed Law Board (scientific support). The steering committee comprised Professor Anna Singer, Associate Professor Vladimir Bastidas, and Associate Professor Santa Slokenberga, with the EAHL board serving as the scientific committee.
The organizers thanked EAHL, Akademikonferens, Uppsala Municipality, Brill, the Swedish National Council on Medical Ethics, and individual professors at Uppsala University’s Faculty of Law for their support.
Further information
Conference website: https://eahl2026.com
Papers capturing the essence of the 10th EAHL Conference will be published in a special issue of the European Journal of Health Law, expected in 2027.
To download the Book of Abstracts, please, click here https://eahl2026.com/abstract-book/
Please, click here to read about the sponsorship provided for Young Scholars.
Please, click the text to downlload the Letter of Invitation.
