Staff News 6 - 8
Staff News - Forthcoming Events 9 - 10
Staff Seminars 11
Administrative Responsibilities 12
Outside of Academia - Sharing Photos 13
WWW elcome to this first Brunel Law School Newsletter for 2009/10. We welcome our ‗freshers‘, new LLM and PhD
students and those that are returning to continue their studies. This issue brings you up to date with the changes that have taken place within the School since the end of last term until now. Following Professor Abimbola Olowofoyeku‘s decision, to step down as the Head of School, Professor Javaid Rehman was appointed as the new Head on 1st August. Additional changes have also been made to the School‘s Management Group and some academic administrative roles. Full details can be found on pages 4 and 5. In September, we were joined by two new lecturers, Dr Olufemi Amao and Dr Muhammed Korotana. Also in September, Stephanie Berry was appointed as a Research Assistant to Professor Rehman. We welcome them all to Brunel and wish them every success in their new posts. At the end of September we were also joined by Ms Lili Wang, from Taiyuan University, as a Visiting Researcher. Lili (who likes to be known as Susan) will be with the School for a year. The School has also offered an Associate Post-Doctoral Research Fellowship to Dr Isaac Welde through the CARA (Council for Assisting Refugee Academics) scheme. Isaac has now joined us and, during his stay, will be supervised by Professor Ilias Bantekas.
BRUNEL UNIVERSITY
November 2009 Volume 3, Issue 1
Brunel Law School
Inside this issue:
Staff Profiles 2 - 3
New School Structure 4 - 5
Staff News 6 - 10
School News 11
Student Representatives 12
Newsletter
for Staff and Students
Student News - 13 - 19
Student News - Graduation Pictures 16 - 17
Student News - Chulalongkorn University Visit 18
Alumni 20 - 23
Staff Seminars 24 - 25
Professor Javaid Rehman
Head of School
I am very pleased to report that
throughout this issue we are able to
congratulate our staff, students and
alumni on their many achievements
CONGRATULATIONS
Dr Farkhanda Zia Mansoor
Olufemi, or Femi as most
people call him, joined Brunel
Law School in September,
2009. Olufemi is a graduate of
University College Cork, Ireland
(Ph.D and PG Cert 2009);
University of Warwick, UK
(LLM, 2005); University of
Ibadan, Nigeria (LLM, 2003);
Obafemi Awolowo University,
Nigeria (LLB, 1997); University
of Ilorin, Nigeria (BA, 1991).
Olufemi was called to the
Nigerian Bar in 1999 and
worked as a barrister in
Nigeria. He was a Lecturer at
the University College Cork. He
has published articles in
reputable Journals including the
Australian Journal of Legal
Philosophy, Journal of African
Law, Journal of Business Ethics,
Dublin University Law Journal,
Journal of International Economic
Law, Journal of Corporate
Citizenship, International Journal
of Human Rights, Hastings
International and Comparative
Law Review and UCD Law Review.
Olufemi is currently a consultant
to the Centre for Law at the Open
University and runs a database for
Nigerian law (www.nlii.org).
Olufemi is a frequent speaker at
national and international
conferences in his area of
expertise. His 2008 article in the
Journal of African Law is ranked
as the most read article in the
Journal for the last twelve
months.
See more academic details on
Femi‘s staff page
Staff Profiles
Meet our
new
Members of
Staff
Page 2 BRUNEL LAW SCHOOL
Dr Olufemi Amao
Dr Olufemi Amao
Dr Shabir Korotana joined the
Brunel Law School in
September 2009. Previously
he has taught law at the
University of Sussex,
Middlesex University, London
Metropolitan University and
the University of Westminster.
He has teaching experience in
the areas of Contract Law, EU
law, International Trade law,
International Economic Law,
Public International Law and
International Financial Law.
However, his current teaching
and research interests are
primarily in the areas of
International Financial law,
International Economic Law
and EU Law.
At present his research particularly
focuses on UK, EU and US financial
regulation, global financial
regulation and the study of current
financial crises and significance of
regulatory regimes across the
world.
Shabir studied law at the University
College, University of Punjab.
Lahore. He pursued his higher
education at the University of
Wales for LLM and received his PhD
at the LSE.
See more academic details on
Shabir‘s staff page
Dr Muhammed Shabir Korotana
Dr Muhammed Korotana
Qian Guo
In September 2009, Stephanie Berry commenced the position of Research Assistant at Brunel Law School, focusing on Islamic State Practices in International Law and Muslim Diasporic
Communities. She is combining this role with a part time PhD on conflict
prevention and the application of minority rights to the Muslim Diaspora in Europe.
Stephanie‘s previous positions have included research assistant for Brunel‘s Collaborative Research Network
‗Security, Human Rights and the Media‘ and editorial assistant for the Nordic Journal of International Law.
Stephanie Berry - Research Assistant
Lili Wang - Visiting Researcher
research interests include Public International Law, Private International Law, Administrative Law and Environmental Law. She has written three chapters in a book,
many articles and two project reports.
During her stay at Brunel, Lili will be
mentored by Professor Kaiyan Kaikobad.
Lili Wang arrived in late September to take up her position as Visiting Researcher within the School.
Lili graduated with a master of laws degree from Shanxi University, China and joined the Department of Law, Taiyuan University of
Technology in 2003 as a lecturer where She taught Administrative Law, Private International Law and
Public International Law. Her
Page 3 VOLUME 3, ISSUE 1
Ms Lili Wang
Stephanie has a LL.B from the University of Manchester and a LL.M in International Human Rights Law from the Raoul Wallenberg Institute/ Lund
University in Sweden.
Earlier this year, Stephanie presented a
paper at the Nordic Refugee Seminar on ‗Integration as Refugee Protection: the Case for a Minority Rights-Based Approach‘. Research interests include: Minority Rights; Refugee Law; Freedom of Religion; and the human rights
implications of counter-terrorism legislation.
Ms Stephanie Berry
At the end of September, Qian Guo, our Visiting Research Scholar, returned to Shanghai
University of Finance and Economics (SUFE) following her year long stay. Qian commented
that she had a most fulfilling time at Brunel during which she:
was mentored by Professor Abimbola Olowofoyeku
continued writing her book „Public power and civil property rights under the view of
constitutionalism‟
was able to collect materials of power controlling and property rights protecting, both in
English and Chinese
spent some time attending Debbie Chay‘s Public Law seminars for postgraduate students
which allowed her to gain better knowledge about common law, especially the unwritten
constitution principle
attended several lectures delivered by different Professors from the University of London,
London School of Economics and Oxford University. This enable Qian to learn more about
the latest research interests of Western academics regarding environment protection,
sustainable development, anti-terrorism and Islamic Law
discussed the different systems of principle and culture between Chinese law and English
law with our GTAs and
prepared her PhD thesis which is about public participation in planning law.
Qian Guo - Visiting Research Scholar
Dr Farkhanda Zia Mansoor School Structure
The new
School
Structure
Page 4 BRUNEL LAW SCHOOL
SCHOOL MANAGEMENT TEAM
Head of School
Professor Javaid Rehman
Deputy Head of School Deputy Head of School
(Operations) (Programmes)
Prof Kaiyan Kaikobad Dr Alexandra Xanthaki
Acting Deputy Head of School
(Programmes)
Dr Dimitrios Giannoulopoulos
Director of Research School Manager
Professor Peter Jaffey Tracey Alexis
The change in the Head of School has also led to changes in the school structure and administrative roles for academic staff.
Qian Guo
Page 5 VOLUME 3, ISSUE 1
ACADEMIC ADMINISTRATIVE ROLES — 2009 — 10
SENIOR TUTOR EXAMINATIONS
Senior Tutor Dr Claire Corbett
Room 231
Assistant Senior Tutor
Dr Christian Heitsch Room 111
Examinations Convenor Ms Felicity Kaganas
Room 221
Assistant Examinations
Convenor Dr Mihail Danov
Room 129
DISSERTATIONS ADMISSIONS
Dissertations Convenor
Dr Mohamed Elewa Badar
Room 105
Assistant Dissertations
Convenor
Dr Muhammed Korotana
Room 107
Admission Tutor Dr Manisuli Ssenyonjo
Room 220
Deputy Admission Tutor
Dr Olufemi Amao Room 120
ADMISSIONS DISABILITY
Admissions Tutor Dr Manisuli Ssenyonjo
Room 220
Deputy Admissions Tutor
Dr Olufemi Amao Room 120
Disability Representative and PDP Tutor
Mr Akalemwa Ngenda Room 121
Deputy Disability Representative Dr Luca Cerioni
Room 224
WORK PLACEMENTS
Work Placement Convenor
Dr Emmanuel Voyiakis
Room 232
Work Placement Assistant
Dr Federico Ferretti Room 127
MOOTING
Mooting Tutor Dr Stefan Fafinski
Room 126
LIBRARY
Library Representative
Prof Patrick Polden Room 213
PROFESSIONAL LIAISON
Professional Liaison Tutor and
Co-ordinator Dr Susan Easton
Room 230
LEVEL TUTORS
Level 1 Tutor Dr Stefan Fafinski
Room 126
Level 2 Tutor Dr Peter Petkoff
Room 111
Level 3 Tutor Dr Emmanuel Voyiakis
Room 232
Staff News
Page 6 BRUNEL LAW SCHOOL
We extend a warm welcome to Nicola Brown who joined the
School‟s Administrative team in June as Undergraduate Programmes
Assistant.
Nicola Brown
Dr Emily Finch has been awarded a Heinz Woolf Fellowship in Public Engagement. This is an
excellent achievement.
STAR (Special Thanks And Recognition) Awards
Having been nominated by our students, lecturers Dr Stefan Fafinski, Dr Emily Finch
and Debbie Chay were each recipients of one of the University‟s STAR Awards. The Vice
Chancellor presented the staff with their STAR Awards at a reception held on 28th May.
This is a tremendous and well-deserved achievement and good to see students‟ recognition
of our lecturers.
Dr Stefan Fafinski has been nominated by our students for Law Teacher of the Year 2010. Many congratulations to
Stef, and we wish him the best in this national competition.
Congratulations go to the Level 2 teachers on achieving a high teaching score in Brunel‟s internal student satisfaction
survey!
The School is pleased to report on the many achievements of our school staff
during the past few months. Many congratulations to all!
Dr Christine Riefa, lecturer in the Brunel Law School, is a Fulbright Distinguished Scholar Award recipient. Christine
has received an EU Scholar-in-residence award and will spend five months at Cleveland-Marshall, Ohio, from January
2010 to May 2010. Christine will be teaching European Consumer Law and conducting research on the protection of
consumers in virtual environments (such as Second Life) and take an active part in the local legal community.
Just three Fulbright Distinguished Scholar Awards have been given to UK scholars this year (2009/10). To achieve this
prestigious award, is an exceptional achievement by Christine.
Staff News
Page 7 VOLUME 3, ISSUE 1
We also congratulate Dimitrios Giannoulopoulos on successfully defending his PhD at
the University of Panthéon-Sorbonne (Paris I), in Paris in April 2009. Dimitrios wrote
and delivered his 852 pages long thesis in French and his viva was observed by the
public. He received the highest distinction awarded for PhDs in France: "très
honourable avec félicitations du jury". Dimitrios‘s thesis was based on the
comparative study of the English, French, Hellenic and United States solutions on the
complex question of the administration of improperly obtained evidence. In the light
of this comparison, Dimitrios drew a distinction between automatic and non-
automatic exclusionary models. As Dimitrios comments, "this distinction reflects very
considerable and very unexpected convergence, on the one hand between the
Hellenic and United States legal systems, which in principle rely on automatic
exclusionary rules; on the other hand, between the English and French legal
systems, where exclusion depends on an in concreto evaluation of the circumstances
relevant to the obtaining of the evidence. At the same time, this distinction reflects
significant divergence between these ‗automatic‘ and ‗non-automatic‘ legal systems,
vis-à-vis free proof and the place of constitutional rights in the criminal process".
Analysing such convergence and divergence Dimitrios‘s work lays the groundwork for
a hybrid exclusionary model common to Anglo-American and Continental legal
systems. His thesis examined whether such a development would be realistic first,
then proposed the adoption of a hybrid model that combines automatic and non-
automatic solutions, and gravitates around an hierarchical application of the
exclusionary principles. This model attaches particular importance to the reliability of
the evidence, but puts the protection of constitutional rights and the integrity of the
criminal justice system first, with a view to reconciling the search for truth with
respect to universal human values.
Dimitrios after attaining his PhD at the University of Panthéon-Sorbonne (Paris I)
Dishonesty Lab
Staff News
“… there were around two million recorded crimes involving dishonesty in
2008 ….”
Page 8
BRUNEL LAW SCHOOL
Brunel University and the British Science Association Launch First Ever
International Study to Investigate Public Perceptions of Dishonesty Brunel University and the British Science Association are calling for a review of the test for
dishonesty, known as the Ghosh test, in criminal law.
Dr Stefan Fafinski and Dr Emily Finch, criminal lawyers and social scientists at Brunel Law
School, believe that the Ghosh test is flawed because it is based on an unattainable common
standard of „dishonesty‟.
In May, to discover how public perceptions of dishonesty can vary (and therefore affect the
outcome of criminal trials), Brunel University and the British Science Association announced
the start of an international scientific study into dishonesty. Funded by the Economic and
Social Research Council (ESRC), Honesty Lab (www.honestylab.com), is an interactive online
survey open to members of the public across the globe. The aim was to get 20,000 people to
complete the brief online study and the results were revealed at the British Science Festival
that took place at the University of Surrey, Guildford and across the region from 5-10
September 2009.
Under current criminal law, there is no definition of dishonesty but a defendant is found to
have acted dishonestly if they were aware that their conduct was dishonest in the eyes of
reasonable and honest people. Honesty Lab will test the researchers‟ prediction that there is
no common standard of dishonesty in today‟s society because there are many factors that
affect our judgment of honest or dishonest acts, for example how the „defendant‟ looks and
whether or not we can relate to the person or act in question.
Dr Stefan Fafinski commented, “There were around two million recorded crimes involving
dishonesty in 2008, so the findings from the Honesty Lab in evaluating the fairness of the
current test in criminal law will be of major public importance and could alter the way judicial
trials are conducted.”
To take part in this one of a kind international scientific study, members of the public were
encouraged to visit the dishonesty website, where they were asked to view a selection of
short video clips to judge whether or not they think the act described is honest or dishonest.
Before viewing each clip, respondents were shown a picture and brief biography of the
„defendant‟ and asked to state whether or not they thought the person looked honest and
whether or not they thought the person was similar to themselves. The acts described
included lying on a CV, knowingly purchasing a pirate DVD and using office stationery for
personal use.
Dr Emily Finch commented, “We believe that the Honesty Lab project will prove that public
attitudes to dishonesty are shaped by the varying personal traits of defendants, jurors and
magistrates, suggesting that whether or not a person is convicted of an offence involving
dishonesty, such as theft, could be somewhat of a lottery under current criminal law. For
example, in April 2002, a man was convicted of theft after collecting over a thousand lost golf
balls from a lake on a golf course using scuba diving equipment. It is entirely possible that
another jury on another day would have decided that this was not dishonest and he would
have been acquitted.”
Sue Hordijenko, Director of Programmes at the British Science Association, said, “We are
delighted to be working with Brunel University on this intriguing study. Participants will be
contributing to a unique piece of research that could have major implications for law policy in
cases involving dishonesty, and we‟re looking forward to revealing the results at the British
Science Festival in September.”
The next phase of research will then involve re-enacting trials in front of mock juries and
analysing the jury decision-making processes in much greater depth, as well as conducting
more focused studies with the public and the judiciary.
Feminist Judgments Project
This innovative research project, funded by the ESRC and led by
Professor Rosemary Hunter (Kent), aims to put theory into practice by
producing alternative feminist judgments in a series of significant cases
in English law. A group of socio-legal scholars are rewriting the
judgments to take account of feminist perspectives and commentaries
are also being written on each judgment to provide context and analysis.
Baroness Hale acted as an adviser on judgment writing at one of a series
of seminars. Brunel Law School‘s Felicity Kaganas and Christine Piper
are focusing on a leading case – RE L –which concerns contact with
children by non-resident parents who have engaged in domestic violence.
This case is in the ‗Parenting‘ theme. There are 4 other themes covering
a variety of leading cases raising issues ranging from equality to criminal
liability. There is a web-site - http://www.kent.ac.uk/law/fjp/ - which
gives information on all the cases, seminars and participants.
Nuffield Foundation Grant
Felicity Kaganas is a member of a group of academics awarded a small
grant from the Nuffield Foundation to pursue a research project entitled
‗What is Family Law For?‘. The other members of the group are
Prof Alison Diduck (UCL) and Prof Shelley Day Sclater.
Professor Roda Mushkat attended the XXIV World Congress of
Philosophy of Law & Social Philosophy: Global Harmony and Rule of Law,
held in Beijing from 15 - 20 September 2009.Her paper-- entitled
'Environmental Human Rights Revisited: The Tension between
Universalism and Cultural Relativism in Light of the Chinese Experience' -
-generated a lively discussion which focused on the analytical reasoning
and practical conclusions
Staff News
Page 9 BRUNEL LAW SCHOOL
Staff News
Page 10 BRUNEL LAW SCHOOL
Dr Holger Sutschet gave a paper at the SLS conference in Keele on 10 September. The topic was: The promise as basis for contractual
remedies.
A recent publication of Dr. Mohamed Elewa Badar – The Mental Element in the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court - was cited by the International Criminal Court in Prosecutor v. Jean-Pierre
Bemba, Case No. ICC-01/05-01/08, Decision on the Confirmation of Charges, 15 June 2009.
In the fall of 2009 two publications of Dr. Badar will appear in the New Criminal Law Review vol. 12/3-4 and in a book titled The Review Conference and the Future of the International Criminal Court, edited by Prof. Otto Triffterer, Dr. Christoph Burchard and Prof. Joachim Vogel,
(Deutschland: Carl Heymanns Verlag).
Dr Badar received an invitation from Prof. William Schabas and Dr. Nadia Bernaz to contribute with a chapter
on modes of criminal participation in their forthcoming Handbook of International Criminal Law with Routledge Publisher (2010) Akalemwa Ngenda, Lecturer in Law, Brunel Law School - was a Visiting Fellow at the Lauterpacht Centre for International Law, University of Cambridge in September 2009. His research project examined the projection of territorial sovereignty into outer space, vis-à-vis claims over intellectual property rights resulting from
microgravity activities.
On October 29, 2009 Dr Badar presented a paper on International Criminal Justice in the 21st Century in the Gutenberg-Gymnasium Bergheim Science Day together with the collaboration of RWTH Aachen University. Felicity Kaganas gave an invited lecture at UCL on 29th October 2009. The paper was entitled 'When it comes to contact disputes, what are family courts for?' and is part of the Current Legal Problems series.
Professor Roda Mushkat gave a seminar presentation entitled 'Towards Environmental Human Rights: Modern Normative Theories Meet Chinese Realities' at the Centre for Comparative and Public Law, Faculty of Law, University of Hong Kong, on 12 November 2009. The event was well attended by faculty members, practitioners and interested undergraduate and postgraduate students. Brunel lecturers Mr. Gerard Conway and Dr. Dimitrios Giannoulopoulos will be giving papers at the Police
Governance and Accountability conference (Centre for Criminal Justice, University of Limerick) on December 3
-4, 2009. Mr Conway will focus on the question of the accountability of a possible European Public Prosecutor, while Dr. Giannoulopoulos will ask, at a normative and comparative level, whether the exclusion of improperly obtained evidence is an appropriate remedy for the abuse of police powers at the pre-trial investigation stage.
Snippets
Page 11 BRUNEL LAW SCHOOL
School News
NSS Results
The 2008-2009 NSS results, published in August, showed that the School has considerably improved its scores and improved in every single aspect from 2007-8. The graph below shows that we are now in the upper quartile for most aspects covered by the survey. The
School will continue in its efforts to improve on these scores during 2009/10.
The VC, Professor Chris Jenks, signing the EMCA agreement in Barcelona
EMCA
In early October, members of Brunel
staff, including the VC, went to
Barcelona to attend the launch of the
EMCA (European Masters in Consumer
Affairs) degree. The degree enables a
student to gain two degrees, from
France, Romania, Italy, Spain or Brunel.
Teaching for 2009-10 began at Brunel
on 29th October. Significant interest
has already been shown for the 2010-11
year.
Student Representative
Page 12 BRUNEL LAW SCHOOL
Our Student Representatives for 2008/9
LEVEL ONE
Saja Jabbar Hadrian Tulk Foirell Tyndale Kimberley Chukwu School Board Rep
LEVEL TWO Vivien Adeoson Jessica Gyamfi-Osew Mian Shah Justin Zinda School Board Rep
LEVEL THREE Althia Ferguson Jennifer Moore Manisha Patel Thomas Varga School Board Rep
CPE LLM PHD Kathryn Richmond Ammar Allatos Sarah Chaudhry Paulette Morris School Board Rep School Board Rep
Student News
Page 13 BRUNEL LAW SCHOOL
Positive Year for Mooting Team
Brunel‘s moot team, led by Dr Stefan
Fafinski, finally went out of the ICLR/Weekly
Law Reports national mooting competition at
the semi-final stage on 5th March. The semi-
final, which was held at the Law Society in
Chancery Lane, was narrowly won by Birmingham City University by a
score of 120-116. Birmingham City went on to meet the College of Law,
Chester in the finals. This is the best performance by a Brunel Mooting
team yet and we are very proud of our team of Olivia Stiles and Ashley
Simon, ably backed up by the impressive research skills of Kiroulus
Abadir. Although Olivia will be moving on to the BVC later this year, we
are fortunate that Ashley and Kiroulus will be with us for another year
and look forward to building on our unprecedented success. It is, of
course, disappointing to go out of the competition having got so close,
but the team represented the Law School and the University admirably
and we can all be rightfully proud of their achievements.
In admiration of their success, in April, at the invitation of Professor Rob
Macredie, the PVC for Student Experience, the mooting team students,
together with Dr Fafinksi and Professor Olowofoyeku, the then Head of
School, attended a celebratory lunch.
l to r: Dr Stefan Fafinski, Olivia Stiles (Senior Counsel), Kiroulus Abadir (Researcher), Ashley Simon (Junior Counsel)
Student News
Page 14 BRUNEL LAW SCHOOL
On March 30 2009,
a group of five law
s t u d e n t s ,
accompanied by
D r . D i m i t r i o s
Giannoulopoulos,
visited Abbottsfield
school for boys in
Hillingdon, where
they discussed with
a group of Year 10
― g i f t e d a n d
talented‖ students
about A levels, life
at university and
fu tu re ca ree r
a s p i r a t i o n s
amongst other
things. Mrs Rizava,
the English teacher who arranged the event, thanked the law
students for ―their enthusiasm and devotion towards the Yr10 boys‖,
commenting that their ―advice and experiences were well received‖
and that ―the school boys found the event very interesting and
relevant to their needs and anxieties‖. The event was part of the
―school tutoring project‖, which will continue with a visit of
Abbottsfield boys to Brunel this autumn. Any law students interested
in participating in the next stage of the project should get in touch
with Dr. Giannoulopoulos at [email protected]
School Tutoring Project
Student News
Page 15 VOLUME 3, ISSUE 1 Page 15 VOLUME 3, ISSUE 1
Student News
Staff v Students Football Match
To celebrate the end of the exams , a staff v students football match was held on
Friday 22nd May. A number of students participated, some of whom were eager to
take revenge for the defeat they suffered in the basketball game held several
months prior to the match. The staff team, supported by two PhD students, was
winning 8-5 in regular time. That was the result at 6 o'clock anyway, when the
game was supposed to end. The students, however, were not prepared to leave the
ground defeated once again, so they insisted that we continued... until 6:20 when,
after 80 minutes of continuous football, they scored what they allege was the
winning goal (9-8)! The truth is we could (should) have stopped the game at 6
o'clock, but were quite reluctant to do so, probably thinking it would destroy their
self-esteem if they were to lose so badly against their teachers, in football this
time... All in all, the final score is open to interpretation.
Many thanks to Christian, Matt and Akalemwa, for an excellent game, and to
Christine Riefa, Ademola, Holger and Adrienne for supporting the team.
Work Placements
All law students both undergraduate and postgraduate should be able to
access the U-link site set up by Alison Taylor (Law Placement Officer) and
Jane Standley (Law Careers Consultant). Look for ―Law Careers
Resources 2009/10‖ where you will find information about law careers
events, help available to you if you are making applications for further
study or training contracts/pupillages, help with interview skills and much
more.
Please check the site regularly for announcements and updates
Student News
Page 16 BRUNEL LAW SCHOOL
Graduation 2009 - Pictures from the “After Graduation” Event
Following this year’s Graduation Ceremony, students and their families, alumni and staff gathered for an “After Graduation” event to celebrate the students’ successes. Amongst the guests were representatives from some of the School’s sponsors, including Criminal Defence Solicitors, IBB Solicitors and West London Law Solicitors. We are once again indebted to these organisations who have generously given their time and
sponsored prizes in support of our students.
Graduation 2009 - Pictures from the “After Graduation” Event
Page 17 VOLUME 3, ISSUE 1
For further graduation pictures please go to:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/bls2009/sets/72157622568698646/detail/
Student News
Page 18 BRUNEL LAW SCHOOL
Chulalongkorn University Visit
Following a successful application by Dr Federico Ferretti, during the summer, several of our PG students were able to spend a month long sponsored educational and cultural visit to Chulalongkorn University in Thailand. One student, Joseph Ife Ogbonna wrote this article about the visit. My visit to Chula University, Thailand brought tremendous benefits to me. I did my LLM here at Brunel and the focus was on the WTO Law such as the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) 1994. In Thailand, the International Economic Law (IEL) module was taught by a Japanese professor
of law who also had the advantage of working for the International Labour Organisation. Instead of following the statutory approach to the study of the law, he chose what one may call an Asian perspective or a development approach. He drew a line between “International Economic Law” and “International Economic Law”: the former, according to the professor, sees IEL as the law governing trade between nations and therefore transnational while the later is the “internalisation” of a powerful state’s domestic economic law as the law for all nations. The Chula IEL programme took a historical approach to the study of international law. It first tried to contextualise IEL within the international legal framework of public international law.
Reflection It is absolutely wonderful to know that there is not just one way of seeing things; that same issue could be approached from different perspectives. Because I kept an open mind, I have now seen a different approach and adjusted mine to address the issues of international development law. It was good to see a thriving economy and a coherent and peaceful legal order that sprang up from a different philosophy of life. Cultural Benefits The cultural influence of the visit on me is great. My visit to the Tiger Temple made me stand back and think. [Buddhist monks keep tigers which tourists are allowed to play with for a 100 baht (£1.90) under their careful watch.] I saw monks who have no “knowledge” of zoology but have achieved what western zoologist would be envious of. There animals appear to live in peace with man and the environment. (Edited. To see the full version please link here.) To see more photographs of the visit please visit our Flickr page Link
Joseph Ife Ogbonna playing with tigers
Students: Claudia, Alina Pyda and Rossana Deplano outside the old palace of he King of Thailand wearing borrowed sarongs as trousers are not allowed inside the building
Student News
Page 19 VOLUME 3, ISSUE 1
PhD Student and GTA, Joseph Ife Ogbonna
presented a paper at the International Law
Association conference on "International
Trade Law and Legal Aspects of Trans-
Border Investment" held in New Delhi,
India, on 19 and 20 September 2009. The
title of his paper was "Domestic
Enforcement of the Decisions of the WTO
Dispute Settlement Body." The paper was
well received by the world body and is
published as Chapter 17 (covering 24
pages) of the book containing papers
delivered by the delegates.
“Brunel Law Film” will continue with the screening of a variety of films, which will be
introduced by your lecturers.
We have already screened:
Witness for the prosecution: Introduced by Dr Christine Riefa (4th November)
Judgment at Nuremberg: Introduced by Professor Kaiyan Kaikobad (25th November)
The following is a list of provisional films for the remainder of this academic year:
Hotel Rwanda: Introduced by Dr Mohamed Elewa
The Baader Meinhof Complex and An Inconvenient Truth:
Introduced by Dr. Christian Heitsch
Traffic: Introduced by Dr Alexandra Xanthaki
La Haine: Introduced by Mr Gerard Conway
Do the right thing: Introduced by Dr Emmanuel Voyiakis
Brunel Law Film
Alumni
Page 20 BRUNEL LAW SCHOOL
Following recent successes by some of our graduates, we are pleased to
introduce Alumni as a new and, hopefully, regular, feature to our newsletter
Congratulations to three former and current Brunel Law students, Dale Maw, Melissa
Harrichand and Justin Zinda (current Level 2 School Board representative), who
participated in The European International Model United Nations (TEIMUN) conference in
July 2009 in The Hague. The theme of the TEIMUN conference was "Seeking a balance in a
changing world order" and our students gained a lot of experience and developed
important skills.
Seja Majeed, one of last year's graduates, whom you may remember for her interest in
international affairs, participated in a panel on volunteering shown on Sky News on the
14th November. Well-done, Seja!
The England women's football team reached the final of the
2009 European Cup in Finland and no fewer than four
people connected to Brunel helped propel the team to their
first European final for 25 years.
Current education PhD student Anita Asante played in
defence, while 2008 Law graduate Eniola Aluko (pictured)
proved to be one of England‘s star strikers, scoring many
of the goals en route to the final.
Aside from the squad members, senior sport sciences
lecturer Misia Gervis has been the team's sport
psychologist for the last five years and has played a very
significant role in the team's fortunes.
In addition, the team‘s Coach Hope Powell was a History and Sport Sciences student at
one of Brunel‘s former colleges, Borough Road College. Speaking about their chances in the
final, Hope said: "Germany will be the clear favourites, but there have been some surprise
results at this tournament and hopefully we can pull off another one.
"We haven't been at our best yet, in terms of our footballing ability, but we have been at
our best for grit and resilience. If we can keep that going and produce our best football
then we'll definitely be in with a chance." Alas, Germany won the match 6—2.
Alumni
Page 21 VOLUME 3, ISSUE 1
Dr Dimitrios Giannoulopoulos, along with three alumni, Karim Mustafa, Eric Yat Chung Tsoi and Ryan Hawthorne at the Graduation event in July 2009. These are true alumnis who, despite their many recent successes, have not forgotten about their alma mater.
See page 22 for further details about Eric Yat Chung Tsoi
Victor Kattan who graduated in 2001, gave a paper “From Coexistence to Conquest—International Law and Origins of the Arab-Israeli Conflict 1891—1949” “Palestine: the twice-promised land” and also launched his new book at Brunel on 28th October 2009 in the University Research Centre- Security, Human Rights and the Media series.
Alumni
Page 22 BRUNEL LAW SCHOOL
Since graduating from Brunel in the summer of
2007, Eric Yat Chung Choi has successfully
completed the Professional Legal Practice course at
BPP Law School, he has obtained a professional
qualification from the Chartered Institute of
Arbitrators, of which he was evaluated as an
associate member, and completed an LLM
(Commercial Law) at UCL. He has now returned to
Hong Kong, where he will be practising as a
barrister in the future. In the mean time, he has
been recently selected to represent the University of
Hong Kong for the very prestigious Jessup Public
International Law moot as the lead oralist.
Law graduate Amina Graham, who graduated
in 2006, is now a big step closer to her dream
career as a barrister after securing a sought-
after pupillage with a top London set of
barristers‘ chambers. She has recently begun
her 12-month pupillage with Furnival
Chambers based near Chancery Lane.
A pupillage is the final stage of training to
become a barrister and follows successful
completion of the Bar Vocational Course (BVC)
at law school. Competition for pupillages is
fierce and the 1,749 students who undertook
the BVC across the UK in 2008/09 had to
battle it out for just 550 available places.
―I was over the moon to secure a pupillage,‖
said Amina. ―I‘ve always loved a good debate
and have always had a passion for
representing the interests of the most
vulnerable people in society. Once I
discovered that there was a job that would
allow me to put these traits into practice there was no turning back!‖
Since graduating from Brunel in 2007, Amina gained a five-month internship in The Hague
working for the defence team in a high-profile war crimes trial. She then travelled to Ghana
to work in a human rights law firm for a month before returning to the UK to work in the
prison law department of a criminal solicitors‘ firm.
Once she has completed her pupillage, Amina hopes to secure a tenancy with the chambers
and wants to specialise in criminal law. She said: ―I want to develop an excellent reputation
and be the best criminal barrister that I can. I hope to become a QC and a Judge one day.‖
Staff Seminars
Page 23 VOLUME 3, ISSUE 1
The School‘s Research Groups have set up a series of staff seminars and invited
speaker lectures throughout 2009/10. A full list of seminars/guest lectures can be
found on page 24. Staff and students have the chance to hear world authorities on
various areas including, human rights, intellectual property and criminal justice issues.
Students are strongly encouraged to attend and actively participate in such events.
l-r: Dr Christine Riefa, Dr Federico Ferretti and Alfonso Sirocco
Alfonso Scirocco, Legal Advisor of the
European Data Protection Supervisor [EDPS] - Brussels, gave a lecture as part of the EMCA series
“Data protection in the EU: rules, actors and challenges” Friday 27th November, (EMCA)
Judge Al-Khassewaneh, Vice President of ICJ gave a lecture: “Islamic Law Before Courts: An Analysis of Reach and Application”
Thursday 12th November, (CRN)
Judge Al-Khassewaneh (Centre) with some of the staff and students who attended his lecture at Brunel
Page 24
BRUNEL LAW SCHOOL
Wednesday 21st October, 4pm (CIPL) Venue: Marie Jahoda, Room 159/160 Dr Matthew Happold, Hull University “Prohibiting Child Soldiering: International Law and National Implementation?”
(University Research Centre- Security, Human Rights and the Media) Wednesday 28th October, 4pm Venue: Marie Jahoda, Room 159/160 Victor Kattan, SOAS. “From Coexistence to Conquest—International Law and Origins of the Arab-Israeli Conflict
1891—1949” “Palestine: the twice-promised land Wednesday 4th November, 6pm (IMPIRG) Venue: Marie Jahoda, Room 159/160 Dr Maria Lillà Montagnani (Bocconi University, Milan) “Open Source Patenting”
Thursday 12th November, 5pm (CRN) Venue: Newton Room South—Hamilton Centre Judge Al-Khassewaneh, Vice President of ICJ “Islamic Law Before Courts: An Analysis of Reach and Application”
Wednesday 18th November, 6pm (IPIMRG) Venue: Marie Jahoda, Room 159/160 Dr Estelle Derclaye, University of Nottingham “Towards a more environmentally-friendly patent law—How patents can help save the planet”
Friday 27th November, 2pm (EMCA) Venue: Lecture Centre ‗B‘ Alfonso Scirocco, Legal Advisor of the European Data Protection Supervisor [EDPS] - Brussels “Data protection in the EU: rules, actors and challenges”
Wednesday 2nd December, 6pm (IPIMRG) Venue: Marie Jahoda, Room 159/160 Dr Barbara Lauriat, St Catherine’s College, University of Oxford “Free Trade in Books: political economy and copyright in Victorian Britain”
Tuesday 8th December, 11am (CRN) Venue: Marie Jahoda, Room 159/160 Dr Saif Mahmood, Chief Advocate, Supreme Court of India “Right to Freedom of Religion in India: Constitutional Mandate and Emerging Challenges”
Staff Seminars
Page 25 VOLUME 3, ISSUE 1
Wednesday 20th January, 6pm (IPIMRG) Venue: Marie Jahoda, Room 159/160 Mr Simon Sellars, Baker & McKenzie “Breach of confidence and privacy in an online world”
Friday 22nd January, 3pm (CJRG) Venue: Marie Jahoda, Room 159/160
Helen Codd, Lancashire Law School, University of Central Lancashire “Justice without borders? Global perspectives on women, prisons and families”
Wednesday 27th January, 2pm (CJRG) Venue: Marie Jahoda, Room 159/160 Dr Sally Cunningham, Leicester University 'Vehicular Homicide: the need for a special offence?'
Wednesday 27th January, 4pm (CIPL) Venue: Marie Jahoda, Room 159/160 John Jones, Doughty Street Chambers
Title: To be confirmed
Wednesday 3rd February, 2pm (CJRG) Venue: Marie Jahoda, Room 159/160 Chris Callendar, Howard League for Penal Reform “Children in prison: the mark of a barbaric, inhumane and uncaring society?” Wednesday 3rd February, 6pm (IPIMRG)
Venue: Marie Jahoda, Room 159/160 Mr Alain Pottage, London School of Economics “Textural machines: patent claims and the representation of invention”
Wednesday 10th February, 4pm (CIPL)
Venue: Marie Jahoda, Room 159/160 Professor Sandi Ghandi, Reading University Title: To be confirmed Wednesday 3rd March, 2pm (CJRG) Venue: LC216
Prof Paul Roberts, University of Nottingham “How to save the Human Rights Act: criminal evidence, human rights and cosmopolitan jurisprudence
Wednesday 10th March, 4pm (CIPL) Venue: Marie Jahoda, Room 159/160 Deirdre Fitzpatrick, Senior Counsel, International Transport Workers
Title: To be confirmed Wednesday 17th March, 4pm (CIPL) Venue: Marie Jahoda, Room 159/160 Professor Abimbola Olowofoyeku, Brunel University
Title: To be confirmed
Top Related