Institute for Law and Finance im HoF der Goethe-Universität

The Institute for Law and Finance (ILF) is actively involved in academic teaching and research, and has played a supportive role as a policy center since its establishment as a public-private partnership in 2002. The ILF provides interdisciplinary training to lawyers, senior managers and business executives in Germany and worldwide. It also serves as a forum for discussions and exchanges between academia and practitioners. This, together with its extensive research work, ensures the ILF makes an impact on the legislative process.

Teaching

The ILF offers an interdisciplinary Master of Laws program – LL.M. Finance – to well-qualified law, business, or economics graduates in Germany and abroad. Courses in this highly specialized program are conducted entirely in the English language.

Our faculty consists of both prominent academics and practitioners, including law and economics professors from Goethe University Frankfurt and partners from major international law firms. Guest professors from abroad, experts from central and commercial banks, regulatory bodies and auditing companies are also here to transfer their knowledge and expertize to our students. An excellent faculty-student ratio of 65 to 50 ensures small classes and closer direct contact between the faculty and students. In addition, all our students have the opportunity to apply the knowledge acquired during this program (and also of making professional contacts) by doing 6- to 8-week internships with our sponsors. Furthermore, the ILF has cooperation agreements for student exchanges with Columbia Law School in the U.S., the Aarhus School of Business in Denmark, and the Amsterdam Business School in the Netherlands.

Since 2008, together with the universities of Deusto, Tilburg and Strasbourg, the ILF also offers a European Master’s in Transnational Trade Law and Finance. This is an Erasmus Mundus program which is financially supported by the European Commission. Every year, the ILF offers special 2-week spring and summer schools. Here, experts from law firms and banks on the long list of ILF sponsors provide an intensive insight into the practical issues involved in banking, capital market and company law to about 40 pre-selected legal trainees. 

Research and Policy Center

The ILF assists in the process during which important legislative changes are made to company, banking and capital market laws by ensuring that such changes are well-scrutinised and discussed. To this end, the ILF has its own series of working papers and regularly organizes guest lectures, conferences and podium discussions on current topics and to which members of the public are cordially invited. Speakers include university professors from Germany and abroad as well as representatives from regulatory bodies, corporations, non-governmental organizations, and legal firms.