On Friday, 16 January 2026, the European Legal Studies Department at the College of Europe is pleased to welcome Mr Fergal Ó REGAN, Head of the European Security and Defence College (ESDC), for a guest lecture on “The current European Security and Defence setting and legal challenges”.
Attendance is compulsory for all LAW students. Participation is also open to students from all other departments.
Biography of the Speaker
Fergal O' REGAN is a senior EU civil servant and academic. Currently, he is the Head of the European Security and Defence College, the EU body that provides military and civilian training and education in the field of the European Union's Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP) in the wider context of the European Union's Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP).
The European Security and Defence College operates under the overall responsibility of the European Union's High Representative and Vice-President of the European Commission, Kaja Kallas, and under the strategic guidance of the EU Member States, through the ESDC Steering Committee and the Council of the European Union. The European Security and Defence College coordinates its work through a network of more than 200 military and training institutes in the Member States and with partner training institutes in third countries.
Prior to joining the European Security and Defence College in April 2023, Fergal O' Regan was Head of Unit and then Chief Legal Expert at the European Ombudsman, the EU body which carries out inquiries in relation to allegations of maladministration by European institutions and agencies. Before becoming an EU civil servant in 2006, he worked at a major Brussels-based law firm, specialising in EU law.
He has been a Visiting Professor at the College of Europe in Bruges from 2012 until 2022 and also gives lectures at a number of other third level institutes, primarily on EU law. Mr O' Regan holds a Master's degree in European Law from the College of Europe in Bruges, as well as law degrees from the Universite d'Aix-Marseille ("Maitrise"in International Law) and the Universidad de Deusto, Bilbao ("Licenciatura" in Law). He has been admitted to the Bar in Bilbao and Brussels. He has also been Chair of the Brussels Branch of Ireland's primary think tank on EU integration, the Institute of International and European Affairs.