Postdoctoral researcher in legal history

The Faculty of Law invites applications for a fixed term employment as a postdoctoral researcher from 1.1.2026 to 31.12.2026. The post is linked to the project Labour Evolution: Forging Individual Rights in the Transformation of Early Modern European Empires, led by Docent Adriana Luna-Fabritius and funded by the Research Council of Finland.

The successful candidate will work with Dr Luna-Fabritius and the project team, developing an individual research agenda aligned with the project’s focus on early modern labour governance, coerced labour, legal reforms, patriarchal structures and police regulations across the Portuguese and British empires.

The work will include:

• Collect and analyse relevant archival and bibliographical material for the project.
• Produce at least one single-authored, peer-reviewed journal article/or book chapter per year.
• Co-author at least one academic output with the PI or another team member per year.
• Organise and participate in the international conference and contribute to the editing of the resulting volume.
• Teach or co-teach (up to 10% of annual workload).
• Contribute actively to the project and the host institution’s research community.

Eligibility and assessment

Applicants must hold a PhD (candidates who are in the final stages of completing their doctoral dissertation may also be considered), demonstrate the ability to conduct independent research, and have prior experience of academic publishing (teaching experience is an advantage). A research proposal aligned with the project is expected.

Candidates are expected to reside in Helsinki, attend on-site activities regularly, and participate actively in project events. Postdoctoral researchers have a teaching load of 10% of their annual working time, corresponding roughly with one or two courses of 20 hours contact teaching. 

Evaluation criteria

• Ability to develop research independently and collaboratively.
• Knowledge and/or experience in intellectual history, legal history, labour history, imperial history, cameral sciences, public law, or science of police in Early Modern period.
• Familiarity with relevant theoretical frameworks (e.g. rights formation, political economy, legal practices, governance and patriarchal regimes in colonial contexts).
• For postdoctoral applicants: a record of peer-reviewed publications.
• Excellent command of English. For work requiring Portuguese sources, proficiency in Portuguese is highly desirable (Spanish is an asset).

What we offer

The salary for the position will be based on level 5 of the job requirement scheme for teaching and research personnel in the salary system of Finnish universities. In addition, the appointee will be paid a salary component based on personal performance. The annual gross salary is €42,000 - €46,000. There will be a six-month trial period for the position.

How to apply

The application must be accompanied by the following documents in PDF format:

• a cover letter;

• a curriculum vitae;

• a numbered list of publications (highlight two key items)

• a research plan (max. 4 pages), explaining how your project aligns with Labour Evolution project, including objectives, methodological and theoretical approach, deliverables, and a publication plan. 

• Contact details for one referee and/or one letter of reference

Further information about academic portfolios is available on our website.

Other attachments or certificates are not required at this point.

Applications must be submitted through the University of Helsinki electronic recruitment system by clicking on the link below. Current employees of the University of Helsinki must submit their applications through SAP Fiori’s Suffeli recruitment portal. The University of Helsinki welcomes applicants from a variety of genders, linguistic and cultural backgrounds, and minorities.

Further information about the position can be obtained from Docent Adriana Luna-Fabritius (adriana.fabritius(at)helsinki.fi). Further information about the recruitment process can be obtained from HR Specialist Mella Mattila (mella.mattila(at)helsinki.fi).

The Faculty of Law at the University of Helsinki is the leading Finnish institute of legal education. Some of the degrees awarded by the Faculty are completed at its bilingual Vaasa Unit of Legal Studies. The Faculty's mission is to train qualified, ethically resposible legal professionals for both the Finnish and international markets through research of an international standard and research-based teaching. The Faculty offers undergraduate degrees in Finnish, Swedish and English as well as a bilingual degree in Swedish and Finnish.The Faculty has a teaching and research staff of around 120 people and 2,400 undergraduate and postgraduate students.