Stijn Van Ruymbeke

Stijn Van Ruymbeke

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Posts

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publications

Rechtspraak in bijberoep: draagvlak voor de inzet van advocaten als plaatsvervangende rechters

Published in Nieuw Juridisch Weekblad, 2025

In this work we examined how Dutch-speaking Belgian magistrates and lawyers view the use of substitute judges — lawyers temporarily acting as judges — based on a large-scale survey.

Recommended citation: Baeck, J., Van Ruymbeke, S., & De Roeck, C. (2025). Rechtspraak in bijberoep : draagvlak voor de inzet van advocaten als plaatsvervangende rechters. NIEUW JURIDISCH WEEKBLAD, (524), 446–456.
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Developing an AI Model for the Detection of Financially Distressed Companies by Belgian Commercial Courts

Published in European Insolvency and Restructuring Journal, 2025

Financial distress among companies poses a significant challenge to economic stability. Timely and effective intervention is needed. In Belgium, the Chambers for Companies in Difficulty (CCDs) within commercial courts play a crucial role in detecting and addressing financial distress through both preventive and regulatory measures. However, the current manual selection process for identifying companies at risk, based on so-called ‘red flags’, is resource-intensive and inconsistent across CCDs.This paper explores the potential of artificial intelligence (AI) to improve the efficiency and objectivity of the CCD’s selection process. Using machine learning techniques, we are currently developing an AI model to assist the CCD in prioritising companies for review by ranking them according to urgency and providing an indication of the likely CCD decision. The model aims to streamline the selection process, reduce judicial workload, and enable CCDs to focus on companies requiring urgent attention. As a contribution to the growing field of AI-driven legal decision support systems, our research offers insights for policymakers and courts seeking to integrate AI into insolvency proceedings. The proposed AI model will be a supportive tool to enhance efficiency and consistency; final decisions will always be made by CCD judges, thus preserving judicial discretion and ensuring procedural fairness.

Recommended citation: Baeck, J., Arno, H., Van Ruymbeke, S., Audenaert, A., Habils, T., Mulier, K., & Demeester, T. (2025). Developing an AI model for the detection of financially distressed companies by Belgian commercial courts. EUROPEAN INSOLVENCY AND RESTRUCTURING JOURNAL, (9). https://doi.org/10.54195/eirj.23613
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Advocaat én rechter? Over het draagvlak voor de inzet van advocaten als plaatsvervangende rechters

Published in Liber amicorum Piet Taelman: puur procesrecht, 2025

In this work we examined how Dutch-speaking Belgian magistrates and lawyers view the use of substitute judges — lawyers temporarily acting as judges — based on a large-scale survey.

Recommended citation: Baeck, J., De Roeck, C., & Van Ruymbeke, S. (2025). Advocaat én rechter? Over het draagvlak voor de inzet van advocaten als plaatsvervangende rechters. In W. Vandenbussche, K. Broeckx, S. Lust, B. Krans, & S. Voet (Eds.), Liber amicorum Piet Taelman : puur procesrecht (pp. 647–665). Wolters Kluwer.
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Artificiële intelligentie en de rechtbank: een verkenning

Published in Rechtskroniek voor de Vrede- en Politierechters 2025, 2025

In this work we outline some ways in which AI can support courts.

Recommended citation: Van Ruymbeke, S., & Baeck, J. (2025). Artificiële intelligentie en de rechtbank : een verkenning. In M. Dambre & P. Lecocq (Eds.), Rechtskroniek voor de Vrede- en Politierechters 2025 (Vol. 41, pp. 355–372). Brugge: die Keure.
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AI-hallucinaties in conclusies

Published in Rechtskundig Weekblad, 2025

In this work we discuss a recent case from Belgium where a lawyer was caught with fake AI-generated citations.

Recommended citation: Baeck, J., & Van Ruymbeke, S. (2025). AI-hallucinaties in conclusies. RECHTSKUNDIG WEEKBLAD, 89(14), 522–522.
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Leveraging Artificial Intelligence as a Decision Support System in Belgian Commercial Courts

Published in Proceedings of the 20th International Conference on Artificial Intelligence and Law, 2026

In Belgium, each commercial court has at least one Chamber for Companies in Difficulties (CCD), tasked with the early detection and investigation of financially distressed companies. While the CCD’s primary objective is to promote recovery by encouraging financially distressed companies to take action, it also has a regulatory function by facilitating the orderly removal of companies that lack the willingness or capacity to recover. To identify companies, CCDs rely on a database of red flags. Based on these red flags, CCDs can decide to open files, investigate companies, and act accordingly. Given the economic stakes and the resource-intensive nature of the current manual process, we are working on a pilot project at the CCD of Antwerp to develop an AI-based judicial decision support system to assist CCD judges in selecting and prioritizing cases.

Recommended citation: Van Ruymbeke, S., Audenaert, A., Arno, H., Habils, T., Baeck, J., Mulier, K., & Demeester, T. (2026). Leveraging artificial intelligence as a decision support system in Belgian commercial courts. In Proceedings of the Twentieth International Conference on Artificial Intelligence and Law (ICAIL 2025) (pp. 489–490). Association for Computing Machinery. https://doi.org/10.1145/3769126.3769232
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Artificial intelligence in the judiciary: a systematic literature review on the practical applications

Published in Information & Communications Technology Law, 2026

Literature on the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the judiciary is expanding rapidly. However, a comprehensive overview of which practical judicial applications stand to benefit from AI technologies remains absent. To address this gap, we conduct a systematic literature review (SLR) of 138 high-quality peer-reviewed journal articles identified through Scopus and Web of Science. In addition to a bibliometric analysis of temporal, geographical, and publication outlet trends, we apply a thematic and cascading synthesis approach to extract deeper insights. Our results show that research converges around two primary domains: (1) applications at the level of the internal management and organization of judiciaries, and (2) applications at the level of legal decision-making. These findings clarify the current landscape of practical AI applications in the judiciary. Additionally, we highlight some key challenges for judicial professionals and researchers seeking to initiate or assess AI implementation projects in judicial settings.

Recommended citation: Van Ruymbeke, S., Baeck, J., Mulier, K., & Demeester, T. (2026). Artificial intelligence in the judiciary: a systematic literature review on the practical applications. Information & Communications Technology Law, 1–33. https://doi.org/10.1080/13600834.2026.2644818
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talks

BWILC

Published:

Presented early results of my research on the use of AI for the detection and evaluation of financially distressed companies at the PhD workshop of the Bob Wessels Insolvency Law Collection in Leiden.

INSOL ERA

Published:

Presented early results of my research on the use of AI for the detection and evaluation of financially distressed companies at the ERA workshop of INSOL International in Barcelona.

INSOL International Annual Colloquium

Published:

Presented early results of my research on the use of AI for the detection and evaluation of financially distressed companies at the Academic Colloquium of INSOL International in Barcelona.

ICAIL

Published:

Presented early results of my research on the use of AI for the detection and evaluation of financially distressed companies at the main track of ICAIL in Chicago.

ICAIL Doctoral Consortium

Published:

Presented early results of my research on the use of AI for the detection and evaluation of financially distressed companies at the doctoral consortium of ICAIL in Chicago.

GenAI symposium

Published:

Invited to present at a symposium for lawyers and magistrates on the use of (Gen)AI.

FEB Research Day

Published:

Presented a poster on the use of AI for the detection and evaluation of financially distressed companies at the research day of the Faculy of Economics and Business Administration at Ghent University.

teaching

Advanced Corporate Finance

MSc Business Economics course, Ghent University, Department of Accounting, Corporate Finance, and Taxation, 2024

Teaching Assistant during the academic years 2024-2025 and 2025-2026.

Master dissertation (economics)

MSc Business Economics course, Ghent University, Department of Accounting, Corporate Finance, and Taxation, 2024

Supervised and evaluated the master dissertation of a business economics student on the effect of zombie firms on startups (academic year 2024-2025)  Evaluated the master dissertation of a business engineering student on growth opportunities and leverage ratios (academic year 2025-2026).

Master dissertation (law)

Master of Laws course, Ghent University, Department of Interdisciplinary Study of Law, Private Law and Business Law, 2025

Evaluated the master dissertation of a law student on the use of AI for recidivism prediction under Belgian criminal law (academic year 2025-2026).