pathway: Socio-Legal Studies

My research is principally centred around Marxist legal philosophy, global health law, and the conceptualisation and achievement of global health justice. Law is not neutral; global health law is certain to adopt a particular philosophical framing, which means law can be harmful and/or beneficial for justice. By way of the development and subsequent deployment of a Gramscian critical lens, my research will analyse the capitalistic legal structures and legal responses to the profound global health crisis of antimicrobial resistance considering, at its forefront, the pursuit of global health justice.

My research is looking into why the criminal defence profession, especially in Southwest England is not an appealing career choice to those under 35 and how this may impact on a defendants access to justice in the future.

A socio-legal analysis of cross-sector provision of societal care for Unaccompanied Asylum-Seeking Children which investigates the methods of association between public and charity sector actors.

The aim of my research is to understand how care provision for UASC is performed in the UK with regard to charity provision of projects and service which aid a child’s developmental needs, as well as their individual understanding of their asylum process.

My research explores how technological advancements influence the illegal movement of cultural artefacts on the market for antiquities. It concentrates on the chain of sale as altered by the development of social media supported by blockchain technology. The research will identify regulatory gaps and shortcomings within international and domestic legislation preventing transnational cooperation of enforcement bodies and other parties involved.

I will look at the legal and regulatory hurdles, both nationally and internationally, which must be overcome for autonomous shipping and similar technologies to be incorporated into our legal and regulatory regime.

This research will be, I believe, the first in-depth project which will look at the issue from both a public and private law perspective.

I am currently undertaking the MSc Socio-Legal Studies and will be commencing PhD research in September 2018. My research will focus on modern slavery in the UK and the current difficulties in defining and measuring it, and will consider the merits of community research as a means of addressing this issue.

In this research I will be conducting an investigation into the importance of realising the obligation to prosecute crimes of torture through the African Charter System. I will show that, although certain elements of the obligation to prosecute crimes of torture are currently found within Africa, the obligation to prosecute is not as clearly grounded as it should be. In doing so I will aim to show the significance of further developing the obligation to prosecute crimes of torture regionally as a human right and its importance for ensuring the prosecution of such crimes throughout the region.