PhD student in Law

The Department of Law is one of the larger departments at Stockholm University. The department has around 150 employees and 5,500 students. More than 70 teachers are engaged full-time in teaching and conducting the research on which the education is based. The department has around 30 professors with different specializations in jurisprudence. Doctoral students at Juridicum become an important part of a dynamic environment with top-class research and a strong international character.

This advertisement applies to both employment and admission to doctoral studies. Only those who have been admitted to doctoral studies can be employed as doctoral students.

For more information about us, please visit: Department of Law.

Subject area 

Law

Field of studies

The position is focused on intellectual property law, with an emphasis on intellectual property and contract law frameworks for AI collaborations in healthcare.

The doctoral studies are primarily funded by Region Stockholm and will be conducted within the framework of the research project “From Data to Shared Value – Legal Frameworks and Contract Models for AI Partnerships in Healthcare” (SU–Region Stockholm 2026). The project concerns the allocation of the value created when clinical health data are used in AI research and commercialization.

A project proposal will form the basis for the selection among applicants. The proposal is expected to relate to the overall objective of the research project, namely to identify, analyze, and further develop legal frameworks, contract models, and governance structures that enable the controlled and predictable allocation of the value created through the use of clinical health data in AI research and commercialization.

The doctoral candidate is expected to work in an interdisciplinary environment and collaborate with relevant stakeholders in healthcare, academia, and the innovation system, including Region Stockholm and Karolinska University Hospital.

The project is expected primarily to concern EU law and international law, but also, to some extent, other national legal systems. The legal issues addressed within the research project include the following:

• Data sharing and data access in healthcare (GDPR and EHDS),
• AI regulation (AI Act),
• Intellectual property law and the “teacher exemption,”
• Contractual models for and governance of tripartite collaborations (hospital–university–industry), and
• Open science and its relationship to commercialization and benefit-sharing.

For further information about the research project, please contact its leader, Professor Frantzeska Papadopoulou Skarp (see contact details below).

Qualification requirements

In order to be admitted to postgraduate education, the applicant must have the general and specific entry requirements. The qualification requirements must be met by the deadline for applications.

In order to meet the general entry requirements to be admitted to doctoral education, applicants must have completed advanced-level studies, fulfilled course requirements of at least 240 higher education credits, of which at least 60 higher education credits must be at advanced level, or otherwise acquired essentially equivalent knowledge within or outside Sweden.

In order to meet the specific requirements to be admitted to doctoral education applicants must have a Bachelor of Laws degree, a Master of Laws degree, or equivalent. Those who can demonstrate other completed education or special professional experience if these merits are deemed to provide competence for doctoral education equivalent to a Bachelor of Laws degree or Master of Laws degree in terms of both scientific skills and general legal knowledge relevant to the subject area of the program also meet the specific requirements.

Eligibility requires very good knowledge of Swedish and good knowledge of English. Very good knowledge of English also qualifies for eligibility.

Selection

The selection among the eligible candidates will be  based on their capacity to benefit from doctoral studies. The assessment criteria applied by the Faculty of Law in evaluating the applicant’s ability to complete the programme are as follows:

The applicant’s general competence, as well as

• the originality of the doctoral project,
• the theoretical framework and research questions in relation to previous research,
• the clarity and relevance of the method in relation to the research questions,
• the contribution of new knowledge and its relevance, and
• the feasibility of the project.

The criteria used to assess the applicant’s general competence are: documented subject knowledge relevant to the research field; the ability to express oneself orally and in writing in Swedish and/or English; analytical ability; creativity; initiative and independence; and the ability to collaborate. The basis for assessment includes previous studies and grades, the quality of the degree project/thesis, references, relevant experience, interviews, and the applicant’s written statement of purpose. In assessing general competence, thesis and other written work demonstrating clarity of presentation and critical analysis may be taken into account, as well as professional experience and similar activities of relevance to the program.

Interdisciplinary education or experience is considered a merit, for example in medicine, public health, health sciences, social sciences, data and information systems, and ethics. Meritorious qualifications also include experience of: (i) applying empirical methods in legal research; (ii) qualitative methods (e.g., semi-structured interviews, document analysis, and case studies); (iii) practical work in the field (e.g., data sharing, health law, digitalization, AI, or innovation and intellectual property law); and (iv) collaboration with EU institutions, regions, hospitals, or innovation offices.

Admission Regulations for Doctoral Studies at Stockholm University.

Special instructions for the Department of Law are available at: Doctoral Studies.

About the employment

We offer a fixed-term employment as a doctoral student according to Chapter 5 of the Higher Education Ordinance (1993:100). The period of employment may not be longer than what corresponds to full-time doctoral education for four years. As a doctoral student, you should primarily devote yourself to your own doctoral education, but the employment may include work with education, research and administration to a limited extent (maximum 20 %).

A new employment as a doctoral student is for a maximum of one year, the employment is then renewed for a maximum of two years at a time.

Stockholm University strives to be a workplace free from discrimination and with equal opportunities for all.

Contact

Information about doctoral education is provided by the Director of Studies for Doctoral Education Agnes Hellner, agnes.hellner@juridicum.su.se.

Information about the application process is provided by Daniel Larsson, daniel.larsson@juridicum.su.se.

Information about the research project is provided by Professor Frantzeska Papadopoulou Skarp, frantzeska.papadopoulou@juridicum.su.se. 

Application

Apply for the PhD student position at Stockholm University's recruitment system. Attach a personal letter and CV as well as the attachments requested in the application form. It is the responsibility of the applicant to ensure that the application is complete in accordance with the instructions in the job advertisement, and that it is submitted before the deadline.

The instructions for applicants are available at: How to apply for a position.