Louize Knops

Areas of expertise

Labour law - Administrative law - Human rights law

Biography

Louize Knops is a doctoral researcher and mandate assistant in social law at the Brussels Centre for Law, Government, and Society (BruCeL) at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB), under the supervision of Prof. Dr. Evelien Timbermont. Louize earned her bilingual bachelor’s degree in law from KU Leuven and UCLouvain Saint Louis Bruxelles in 2018 and received her master’s degree with a major in social law from KU Leuven in 2020. In 2022, she earned a postgraduate degree in pension law from KU Leuven. Louize worked as a trainee attorney at the Brussels Bar before returning to university to prepare her doctoral dissertation. 

Since 2025, Louize has also been an editor for the academic blog Strasbourg Observers.

Teaching

Louize leads the seminars for the course “Introduction to Law” for first-year undergraduate law students at the VUB. In addition to teaching, she coordinates the seminars among the various teaching assistants and prepares the course materials. Louize also serves as a jury member for evaluating master’s students’ theses.

Research

Louize has a particular interest in “atypical” employment relationships and the impact of the employment relationship on human rights. Her research focuses on the relationship between professional deontological obligations and the right to freedom of expression of ministerial advisers, judges, and members of parliament. She studies the impact of their special status and compares them with private-sector employees, civil servants, and employees in public service. Her research focuses on the Belgian context and the case law of the European Court of Human Rights. She combines her legal analysis with empirical research through surveys and interviews.

Selection of publications

• Knops, L. (2026). Are Judges “public watchdogs” or “ordinary influencers”? An Analysis of Judicial Expression on Matters of Public Interest in the Digital Age. European Human Rights Law Review, 2026(2), 242-250. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/20319525261465735; 
• Knops, L. (2026). Commensurate remuneration for judges in times of budget cuts: An analysis of judicial independence and overtime compensation. European Labour Law Journal. https://doi.org/10.1177/20319525261465735;
• Knops, L. (2026). Individual or always a judge? The Grand Chamber’s divided search for balance in Danileţ v. Romania. Strasbourg Observers. https://strasbourgobservers.com/2026/03/06/individual-or-always-a-judge-the-grand-chambers-divided-search-for-balance-in-danilet-v-romania/;
• Timbermont, E., & Knops, L. (2025). Judges’ free speech on social media: Theory versus practice? A theoretical and empirical study of judges’ freedom of expression on social media platforms. European Labour Law Journal. https://doi.org/10.1177/20319525241312166;
• Knops, L., & Timbermont, E. (2024). Iedereen 'neutraal'? Over de redelijkheid van een neutraliteitsplicht op de werkvloer. In Is het sociaal recht redelijk? (pp. 141-172). Anthemis. https://app.lexnow.io/o/book/detail/448265/datasheet.