Impact of mergers on conflicts at universities—Conclusions from courts decisions

Abstract

Despite the growing popularity of mergers in higher education, limited research examines their impact on conflicts within the affected universities and their surroundings. The article discusses the issue of university mergers in Belgium, Germany, and Spain, which were so severe that they required resolution by a constitutional court. The methods include an analysis of constitutional courts' judgments, supported by the analysis of literature and legal acts concerning higher education. The results indicate that both forced and voluntary mergers lead to fierce conflicts resolved by constitutional courts. Conflicts may arise not only in universities to be merged or already merged but also within the institutional environment of the university. In addition to the unified universities themselves, participants in such conflicts may also include competing universities, professional associations, student unions, and governmental bodies. In court disputes regarding the merging of universities, a violation of the university's right to autonomy and/or of academic freedom in general are usually alleged. The results also show that the different structures and organizational cultures of universities need not presage the failure of the merger.