Launch of research cooperation between University of Innsbruck and CMS Austria in medical law

The Faculty of Law at the Leopold Franzens University of Innsbruck and CMS Austria are partnering to promote university researchers in medical law. CMS will support the research centre for medical law at the University of Innsbruck both financially and in relation to content. The CMS Life Sciences Award is also being introduced.

A cooperation agreement was recently signed by Univ.-Prof. Dr. Walter Obwexer, Dean of the Faculty of Law, and Dr. Gabriela Staber, Partner, and expert in the field of Life Sciences & Healthcare at CMS Austria. The cooperation aims to further advance research in the field of medical law. The research should provide answers to many under-investigated or new legal questions in this area.

CMS provides input from the practice 

The cooperation will further intensify the teaching and research focus in medical law that has been successfully established at the University of Innsbruck Faculty of Law. Through CMS, one of the leading national and international law firms in the field of Life Sciences & Healthcare, students will receive valuable input from the practice in the future. They will be able to resort to a pool of current topic suggestions for dissertations, master's theses, and seminar papers with particular focus on pharmaceutical and medical device law as well as biotechnology.

Award for exceptional achievements 

Another important part of the research cooperation is the CMS Life Sciences Award, which will be presented once a year. The award is endowed with EUR 2,500 and is intended for students whose excellent dissertations, master's theses or seminar papers make an important contribution to research in medical law.

In addition to the CMS Life Sciences Award, conferences and networking events will be facilitated. These will focus on information and the exchange of new results to help students and academics better understand topics relevant to the field.

No development without research

Univ. Prof. Dr. Walter Obwexer says about the research cooperation: "Our students, directors and staff at the research centre are united in their endeavour to ensure the permanent development of medical law through their commitment and results. We are very pleased to be working with CMS, as the cooperation will enable us to offer an even better organisational, financial and personnel framework for relevant research projects."

CMS partner Dr. Gabriela Staber, who herself advises pharmaceutical, medical and biotech companies, hospitals as well as healthcare start-ups, emphasises: "Of course, there will be many pressing questions and challenges over the coming years, especially in health law. This makes it all the more important to support research activities and thus also create an academic basis for practical work. We see ourselves here not only as a supplier of ideas and topics but also as an interface and contact broker between university research and companies in the life sciences & healthcare sector."

Medical Law and Public Health at the University of Innsbruck

For 20 years now, the Leopold Franzens University of Innsbruck has been focusing on medical and health law. With the University Course in Medical Law, the Summer School Medical Law, the Doctoral College in Medical Law and Health Care and the Research Centre for Medical Law, there are now four pillars that support teaching and research in equal measure. Not least, for this reason, the University of Innsbruck sees itself as an authoritative hub for medical law issues.