Welcome to Linnaeus University! Here you'll meet 2 200 staff members and 40 000 students, all united in following the vision to set knowledge in motion for a sustainable societal development. With us, research and education are conducted with an eye towards the future. Our proximity to the business world, both locally and globally, gives us a wide reach and the ability to create change that makes an impact. All that's needed is a place where ideas have the space to meet and grow. That's what we've created - and you are invited.Change starts here!Linnaeus University is Sweden's newest and most modern legal research environment. We are now recruiting a doctoral fellow for a project (COMP-DATA) under the supervision of Professor Graham Butler, with support from the Swedish Competition Authority on EU law, namely within the growing and intertwined areas of EU competition law and EU privacy and data protection law.Subject area for the position: LawLocation: KalmarSince Linnaeus University is located in both Växjö and Kalmar, travel between the two may be required.Term and hoursThe position is limited in time in accordance with the Higher Education Ordinance (1993:100) (Chapter 5, Section 7). The position is full time.The Higher Education Ordinance (1993:100) (Chapter 5, Section 2) states that a person employed as a doctoral student shall primarily devote their time to their own doctoral studies. However, a doctoral student may, to a limited extent, engage in teaching, research and administration. Such duties may not exceed 20 per cent of full-time working hours for the doctoral position before the doctoral degree has been awarded.Start date: By agreement.Research projectThe COMP-DATA project (The Powers and Cooperation of National Competition Authorities in the Age of Competition Law's Intertwinement with Data Protection), led by Professor Graham Butler, the Principal Investigator (P.I.) at the Department of Law at the Faculty of Social Sciences, is seeking a suitable candidate to write a doctoral thesis in European law.The COMP-DATA project examines the following overarching question: how should national competition authorities (e.g. the Swedish Competition Authority) act with regard to the exercise of authority and cooperation, both nationally (horizontally) and at EU level (vertically) in an era when competition law and data protection law increasingly overlap and interact with each other? The question is particularly important because data protection is primarily the domain of other national bodies, such as national data protection authorities (e.g., the Swedish Data Protection Authority). When the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) finds that national competition authorities also have powers in this area, new legal competences are created for these authorities, which have not yet been clarified. This COMP-DATA project, divided into two specific parts, will create new and increased understanding of the consequences of how national competition authorities should fulfil their mandates, when working with increasingly complex investigations where data protection issues are raised.The COMP-DATA project is jointly funded by the Swedish Competition Authority (Konkurrensverket) and Linnaeus University.As part of the doctoral education, the doctoral fellow must complete necessary courses as agreed with the supervisors. Participation in national and international courses and conferences is supported, as are exchanges with other partners outside the project.The Higher Education Ordinance states that a person employed as a doctoral fellow must primarily devote himself to his own education. An employee may, however, work with education, research and administration to a limited extent. Such work may not, before the doctoral degree has been awarded, comprise more than 20% of full-time work.Entry requirementsTo be admitted to doctoral education, the applicant is required, according to Chapter 7, Section 35 of the Higher Education Ordinance to: * Have basic eligibility and the special eligibility that the university may have prescribed.Basic eligibility is achieved by someone who:
has completed a degree at advanced level,
has completed course requirements of at least 240 higher education credits, of which at least 60 higher education credits at advanced level, or,
has acquired essentially equivalent knowledge in some other way, inside or outside the jurisdiction.
and, * Is deemed to have such ability in other respects as is necessary to benefit from the education.The requirements for special eligibility that are set must be absolutely necessary for the doctoral fellow to be able to benefit from the education. The Department of Law determines which assessment criteria are to be applied when assessing the ability to benefit from the education. The specific qualifications that apply to the specific position the employment profile refers to are regulated in the general study plan for the subject, which you can find here: .Other requirementsApplicants with a strong interest in the following subjects areas are particularly desirable:
European law, and EU law,
Competition law, internal market law, commercial law, or
Privacy law, and data protection law.
Assessment criteriaApplications for doctoral studies are regulated in the admissions regulations.Applicants are selected based on their ability to make the most of the doctoral studies. The assessment considers the scientific skills documented in scientific work, in particular the quality of undergraduate, graduate and other academic works. The assessment also considers the breadth and composition of the undergraduate and postgraduate degree and the perspective that the intended principal supervisor, examiner and other colleagues within the research group and subject have of the applicant's qualifications. Significant emphasis is placed on the applicant's proven ability to work well with others and overall personal suitability for the role.Applicants are ranked by the relevant body for doctoral studies after receiving a statement from the intended principal supervisor with a proposed ranking.Potential applicants are encouraged to contact the P.I., Professor Graham Butler, for more information about the project before submitting their application.Please submit your application by 1 November 2025.Application The application must include:(i). a brief personal statement outlining your interests, your motivation for undertaking doctoral studies, and a summary of qualifications and experience relevant to the programme and research project,(ii) a CV,(iii) certified copies of transcripts,(iv) contact details for two academic referees,(v) a copy of your master's thesis (or equivalent) and any publications,(vi) a preliminary research proposal of 3-5 pages.The preliminary research proposal should describe the planned research and how it relates to research within European law and the COMP-DATA project. For example, it should include the following:
Doctoral thesis title (it should be descriptive in nature on what your intended work is about)
Summary (short summary of the research plan, max. 10 lines)
Problem statement (a brief description of the main issue(s), possible theoretical perspectives, and theoretical motivation for the study)
Research question(s) (present well-defined question(s) for the proposed doctoral thesis).
Method (describe with which methods you intend to carry out the doctoral thesis).
Timeline (the proposed timeline in which you intend to complete the doctoral thesis).
Contact information
Interim Head of Department, Department of Law: Associate Professor Katarina Hyltén-Cavallius, katarina.hc@lnu.se
Principal Investigator (P.I.): Professor Graham Butler, graham.butler@lnu.se
Linnaeus University has the ambition to utilize the qualities that an even gender distribution and diversity brings to the organization.Please apply by clicking on the Apply button at the bottom of the ad. Applicants are requested to the application resolving CV, cover letter , a copy of a relevant essay , grades and certificates and other relevant documents. The applicant also requested to submit with their application a proposed research plan within the current area of research. All documents must be attached to digital in the application. The application and other documents shall be marked with the reference number. All documents cited must be received by the University no later than 23.59 (Local time in Sweden) on the closing day.Linnaeus University is an employer that meets the requirements of the European Charter for Researchers and follows the recruitment guidelines. Therefore, the university has received the HR Excellence in Research award.Please note that a valid identification must be presented at the time of the interview.URL to this page https://lnu.se/en/meet-linnaeus-university/work-with-us/vacancies-page/?rmpage=job&rmjob=8722&rmlang=UK
