Meet the new Faculty of Law leadership team

Dean Jukka Mähönen

is the Faculty of Law’s new Dean. He oversees the Faculty’s general management, especially finances and HR, and is also responsible for fundraising.

With almost 25 years of experience in professorships at the Universities of Turku, Oslo and Helsinki, and having served as Dean at the University of Turku from 2010 to 2015, Mähönen brings considerable expertise to his role.

“Leading the Faculty of Law in Helsinki is a challenge I couldn't resist. The position also gives me the chance to contribute to the leadership of Finland’s oldest and largest university, the University of Helsinki.”

During his deanship, Mähönen wishes to strengthen the Faculty as a teaching and research community. His goal is to expand the Faculty’s student numbers in a measured way across Finnish-, Swedish- and English-language undergraduate and postgraduate programmes. 

“While the Faculty has a national mission in upholding the rule of law, I hope to extend its influence internationally and bolster its research and finances with national and international funding.”

Vice-Dean Sakari Melander

Professor of Criminal Law  is the Faculty’s Vice-Dean for Research, overseeing researcher education, research activities more broadly and research infrastructures. He also deputises for the Dean.

Melander emphasises that, while the Faculty produces research of the highest national and international quality, more time and support are needed for research, funding applications and legal research development. He also highlights the importance of raising the Faculty’s research profile both internally and externally

“The Faculty should host regular research seminars, where community members could present their ongoing work to one another. This would be particularly important for new doctoral researchers, who need the chance to introduce their projects to the community.”

Melander would also like to improve support for research funding applications and more broadly integrate legal research into the University of Helsinki’s multidisciplinary research.

Vice-Dean Laura Ervo

Professor of Procedural Law is the new Vice-Dean for Academic Affairs. She is responsible for the Faculty of Law’s teaching, including its strategic development. Her role includes steering degree programme operations, monitoring curriculum design and quality, and supporting teachers in their pedagogical work.

Before transferring to the University of Helsinki, Ervo spent several years as a professor at Örebro University in Sweden. The opportunity to apply her Swedish experience of academic leadership and pedagogical development was a key factor in her decision to take up the position of Vice-Dean.

“This role will allow me to draw on both my international experience and my strong commitment to Finnish legal scholarship.”

Ervo aims to foster an open, encouraging atmosphere where teaching is developed collaboratively and student feedback is taken seriously.

“I’m committed to ensuring the Faculty’s teaching genuinely supports student learning. My goal is to promote comprehensive teaching development so that both the content and methods of teaching meet current and future needs, equipping students with the skills needed for a legal career.”

Vice-Dean Anette Alén

Vice-Dean will oversee the Faculty’s public engagement, alumni activities, stakeholder relations, partnerships, innovation, business collaboration and digital solutions, including AI. She is Professor of Civil and Commercial Law, with research focusing on technology and communications law.

Alén previously served as Vice-Dean for Academic Affairs, making her continued role in the Faculty’s leadership team a natural step.

“As Vice-Dean for Academic Affairs, part of my work involved public engagement. I led a pilot project on micro-credentials, developing a new type of training programme tailored to employer needs in collaboration with our employer partners. I was also engaged in business collaboration, especially in AI-related matters.”

Alén wants the Faculty to play a role in shaping social change, while upholding the rule of law alongside its stakeholders. Additional priorities include developing AI-related initiatives and operations, and systematising business partnerships. 

Vice-Dean Dorota Gozdecka

Vice-Dean Dorota Gozdecka is responsible for international affairs within the Faculty. This includes developing and sustaining international partnerships, strengthening the Faculty’s international profile, and, in cooperation with the Vice-Dean for Academic Affairs, contributing to the development of international degree programmes.

Gozdecka is a Professor of Law specialising in human rights, non-discrimination and critical legal theory. She researches how law governs diversity, with a focus on equality, pluralism and representation. In this new position, Gozdecka can bring together her experience in legal scholarship, international research leadership and senior advisory roles in a way that has concrete institutional impact.

Gozdecka considers it essential that internationalisation is substantive rather than symbolic. 

“I am particularly concerned with how internationalisation is experienced internally by staff and students who may encounter structural, linguistic or cultural barriers to participation. Within my area of responsibility, I would like to promote internationalisation that is embedded in governance, leadership development and academic practice, rather than treated as a simple add-on.”