My research largely centres around two areas, biotechnology and reproduction, and I am particularly interested in xenotransplantation. Themes within my work include autonomy, risk, regulation, and the relationship between law and ethics. My research explores legal and ethical aspects of clinical research, regulation and risk, and I have published on the legal regulation of xenotransplantation, and issues surrounding consenting to risk. I am also interested in decision making processes and practices with regard to the 'vulnerable'.
Health care law and ethics generally. I am particularly interested in clinical research involving human and non-human animals, developing biotechnologies such as xenotransplantation (especially issues of risk and regulation), reproductive technologies, organ donation and transplantation, consent and capacity, and decision making for the 'vulnerable'
Family law - especially issues around parents, parenthood and reproductive technologies, children and childhood - particularly children and health.
2012-2013 - Lent Term - I am on sabbatical leave from 15 December 2012-14 April 2013.
Michaelmas Term
UG - Part II, Second year - Law 240 Family Law, joint course convenor with Dr Sarah Beresford, lecturer and seminar leader.
Final year - Law 343 Health Care Law and Ethics, joint course convenor with Professor Suzanne Ost, lecturer and seminar leader.
Law 350 - Gender and the Law - lecturer and seminar leader.
PG - LLM 101 Foundations of Medical Law, course tutor.
Associate Editor (Public Policy and Law) of Clinical Ethics (published by the Royal Society of Medicine).
Associate Editor (Book Reviews) of the Medical Law Review, pubished by Oxford University Press.
2013 Peer reviewer for the Leverhulme Trust
2012 - External Examiner, University of Dundee, LLM Healthcare Law and Ethics.
2012 - External Examiner, University of Manchester, LLM Health Care Ethics and Law.
2012 Wellcome Trust peer reviewer.
2010- External Examiner, LLB (Hons) Glasgow University.
2010 ESRC peer reviewer.
2009 PhD External Examiner, Law School University of Newcastle upon Tyne: 'Women's Empowerment versus the Sanctity of Life: The Law and the Politics of Family Planning in Nigeria and the United Kingdom - A Comparative Analysis'.
2005-9 External Examiner, LLM Health Care Ethics and Law, Law School, University of Huddersfield.
2004-8 External Examiner, MSc Health Care Ethics, Department of Primary Care, Liverpool University.
Peer reviewer for a variety of journals including the Journal of Law, Medicine and Ethics; Journal of Social Welfare and Family Law; Child and Family Law Quarterly; Medical Law International; Bioethics; Genomics, Society and Policy, Medical Law Review; and the Journal of Medical Ethics.
Co-Director, Centre for Bioethics and Medical Law.
Equality, Diversity and Disabilities Officer.
I am currently working on 6 projects:
(i) the role of the public in determining the legal response to reproductive biotechnologies such as sex selection for non-medical reasons (with Rebecca Bennett, University of Manchester).
(ii) an ethical and legal defence of of a compulsory national breast implant registry (with Lucy Frith, Univesity of Liverpool)
(iii) research regulation and 'vulnerability'
(iv) xenotransplantation in Europe
(v) the power of 'proper medical treatment'
(vi) who consents when the patient and their parents are under 18.