Centre for Human Rights Law

Dr Paul O'Connell

Key information

Roles
School of Law, Gender and Media Reader in Law School of Law, Gender and Media Final Year Tutor Centre for Human Rights Law Member
Qualifications
LLB (Dublin) LLM PhD (NUI)
Building
Senate House
Office
S236
Email address
po5@soas.ac.uk
Telephone number
+44 (0)20 7898 4712

Biography

Paul joined SOAS as a Reader in Law in September 2013. 

Prior to this he was a Reader in Law at the University of Leicester, where he worked from 2009-2013, and a Lecturer in Law at the National University of Ireland in Galway from 2005-2008. Paul’s research interests lie in the areas of Public Law, Human Rights (particularly Socio-Economic Rights), Globalisation and the Law, Critical Legal Theory (in particular Marxist critiques of law), Law and Social Change, Comparative Law and International Law.

He has published on the impact of globalisation on human rights and on the comparative protection of socio-economic rights. He is currently working on a project which critically interrogates the relationship between globalisation and human rights. In relation to this he spent the academic year 2013-2014 as a Visiting Fellow at the Harvard Human Rights Program, with support from the Fulbright Commission and a British Academy Mid-Career Fellowship. 

Paul is happy to supervise doctoral candidates wishing to work socio-economic rights, comparative law, globalisation and law and critical legal theories.

Research interests

  • Public Law
  • Human Rights (particularly Socio-Economic Rights)
  • Globalisation and the Law
  • CriticalLegal Theory
  • Law and Social Change
  • Comparative Law and International Law

PhD Supervision

Name Title
Panagiotis Gkagkatsi Critique of Economic Sanctions and connection with the general state of international law. The absence of examination of material circumstances, postcolonialism and socioeconomic rights.
Sanjit Nagi The 20th century British Labour Party's shift away from rights rooted in an Ethical Society and Untrammelled Sovereignty

Publications

Contact Paul