Dirk Voorhoof holds a Master Degree in Law (1979) and Communication Sciences (1980), and a PhD in Law (1990). He was a lawyer at the Brussels Bar (1990-1992), a member of the Federal Commission for Access to Administrative Documents (1994-2005), member of the Flemish Media Council (2005-2012) and member of the Flemish Regulator for the Media (2006-2016).
He was a professor at Ghent University (1992-2016), teaching the courses of ‘Media Law’, ‘Copyright Law’, ‘Journalism & Ethics’ and ‘European Media Law’, both in the Faculty of Law and Criminology and in the Faculty of Political and Social Sciences, Communication Studies.
From 2002-2007 he lectured at the University of Oxford, MLAP (Global Media Law Advocates Programme) and he has been teaching Media Law at Copenhagen University from 2004 to 2017. He is also a guest professor at Luxembourg University in the master programme on Space, Telecommunications and Media Law (since 2017). He is a founding member of the European Centre for Press and Media Freedom (ECPMF, Leipzig) and of Legal Human Academy. He was a member of the Committee of Experts on Internet Intermediaries (MSI-NET) of the Council of Europe (2016-2018). He is also active in the JUFREX-pool of experts (Council of Europe/EU (since 2017) and in the Global FOE&I @Columbia experts network, Columbia University, New York (since 2014).
He was also a member of the Expert Committee on SLAPPs (MSI-SLP, 2022-2024), drafting the Recommendation of the Committee of Ministers of 5 April 2024 on countering the use of strategic lawsuits against public participation. He is active in CASE, the coalition against SLAPPs in Europe, representing the Human Rights Centre, and he coordinates the Belgian anti-SLAPP working group (www.slapp.be).
He regularly reports on developments regarding freedom of expression, media and journalism in Iris, legal newsletter of the European Audiovisual Observatory (Strasbourg) and he co-authors, together with T. Mc Gonagle (Sup. ed.) the e-book Freedom of Expression, the Media and Journalists. Case law of the European Court of Human Rights.
University Degrees
– Member of the CMPF Scientific Committee, Centre for Media Pluralism and Press Freedom, Robert Schuman Centre for Advanced Studies, European University Institute, Florence/Fiesole
– Member of the Global FOE&I@Columbia experts network, Columbia University, New York
– Member of the European Centre for Press & Media Freedom (ECPMF), Leipzig
– Member of the Scientific Committee of Auteurs & Media (Larcier, Brussels)
– Member of the pool of experts of JUFREX (Council of Europe/EU)
– Author of amicus curiae in the Inter American Court
