NZCIEL Visiting Scholar—Nicolas Diebold
NZCIEL welcomes Nicolas Diebold, Professor of Law and competition expert, as our visiting scholar, working on his latest book on legal norms and market access.
Nicolas Diebold, a distinguished Professor of Law at the University of Lucerne, has been an integral part of the faculty since 2019, serving as Dean from 2022 to 2024. A founding member and former managing director of the Institute for Economy and Regulation (WiRe), Nicolas continues to contribute his expertise as a member of the Swiss Competition Commission.
Currently on an academic visit at the NZCIEL, Nicolas is focused on completing the second volume of his groundbreaking work, Competition Law and Market Regulation. This upcoming volume, titled "Market Access," examines the legal rules governing entry to product, service, and infrastructure markets. It provides a comprehensive analysis of legal norms aimed at safeguarding free markets from interference by both state and private entities. From constitutional law and international economic law to antitrust and public procurement law, this volume is a critical exploration of how legal frameworks regulate market access.
Reflecting of his choice of the NZCIEL as a host institution, Nicolas says,
“The NZCIEL provides an intellectually stimulating environment that encourages cross-disciplinary collaboration, allowing me to refine my research and engage with global perspectives on competition law. I was particularly interested in the regulatory toolkit and related tools the NZCIEL has developed, which offers innovative solutions for addressing legal problems.”
Back at the University of Lucerne, Nicolas teaches an array of subjects within public economic law, with a strong focus on competition law, regulated industries (including public transportation, energy, and telecommunications), WTO law, investment protection agreements, and Switzerland’s complex bilateral relations with the EU. His research seeks to understand the delicate balance between promoting free market principles and addressing public interests such as the provision of public services, social policies, and sustainability concerns.
Some of Nicolas’ most notable publications include Non-discrimination in International Trade in Services: "Likeness" in WTO/GATS (Cambridge University Press, 2010), Free Movement of People and Multilevel Governance (Dike/Nomos, 2016), and Competition Law and Market Regulation, Vol. 1 (Schulthess, 2023, co-authored with Bernhard Ruetsche).
NZCIEL Visiting Scholar
Faculty of Law