News: socio-legal publications
This page contains details of socio-legal publications including books, journals, reports, papers and newsletters/bulletins.
If you would like your publication included on this page, please contact
Latest publications ...
Latest from the JLS Blog: Meet the Authors – Kees Huizinga and Alexander Holder
Sentencing Council: research roundup
The Age of Human Rights Journal: call for papers
Bloomsbury back to university sale: 25% off selected titles include in law
Leverhulme Trust: Funding Bulletin
Books
Prevent, Surveil and Protect: The Fight against Terrorism in the UK, by Kat Langley and Hannah Wishart
More than two decades on from the 9/11 terrorist attacks, and more than fifty years since the start of the Troubles in Northern Ireland, terrorism continues to pose a threat to the UK, and the laws and policies that counter it have expanded considerably over the same period. The question remains: how can states prevent terrorism and protect individuals without making significant inroads into traditionally held rights and liberties. In March 2023, the University of Sunderland held an important and timely two-day event on the topic of 'Prevent, Surveil and Protect: The Fight against Terrorism' (partly funded under the SLSA Seminar Competition). The first day of the event constituted an online symposium, which drew together international and interdisciplinary experts from academia, policy, and practice, to discuss the relevant issues. This e-booklet by Kat Langley and Hannah Wishart brings together the two days of the event into one publication to raise awareness of the UK’s counter-terrorism laws and policies. It is available as a download or you can contact the authors direct at
Bloomsbury back to university sale: 25% off selected titles include in law
Hart Publishing are offering 25% discount on hundreds of print books and ebooks. See website for details. Offer closes: 8 October 2023.
Summer 2023
New book: Public Health Crisis Management and Criminal Liability of Governments by Michael Bohlander, Gerhard Kemp and Mark Webster – 20% discount available
Published by Hart, this book argues that given the significance of strategic failings in responding to COVID-19, criminal liability might well come into play. It suggests potential avenues for such liability, particularly for causing bodily harm and death. Meticulously charting the responses from Europe, Africa, the Middle East, Asia, North America and Latin America, it sets out each country’s response, infection rates and casualties. It then looks at the applicable criminal law and how acts or omissions might be analysed within that particular legal framework. See website for details. Use codes GLR BE1UK for UK orders and GLR BE1US for US orders.
New book: India's Communal Constitution: India's Communal Constitution by Mathew John
This book speaks to debates on law, constitutionalism, and the contested terrain of political identity in modern India. Set against the overwhelmingly liberal design of the Indian Constitution, the book demonstrates a tendency in the Constitution and its practice to identify the Indian people in parochial and communal terms. See website for details.
New book: Constitutional Resilience in South Asia, Swati Jhaveri, Tarunabh Khaitan and Dinesha Samararatne (eds)
South Asia has had a tumultuous and varied experience with constitutional democracy that predates the recent rise in populism (and its study) in established democracies. And yet, this region has remained largely ignored by constitutional studies and democracy scholars. This book addresses this gap and presents a contribution to the South Asia-centric literature on the topic of the stability and resilience of constitutional democracies. See website for details.
New book: The Nature and Impacts of Noncompliance by Edvaldo Moita – 20% discount available
This book explores the legal implications of the global informal economy in which over 2 billion people work (61% of the world’s employed population). It considers the phenomenon of informality and the functioning of the legal system in contexts where noncompliance is widespread. Focusing on street vending in Brazil, the book provides an account of the phenomenon’s legal nature, highlighting what can be conceived as noncompliance and by which forms noncompliant behaviour can be assessed. It goes on to set out the most striking impacts of noncompliance; specifically, what happens with the legal system when noncompliance becomes pervasive. See website for details. Use codes code GLR BE1UK for UK orders and GLR BE1US for US orders.
Boydell & Brewer: 45% discount on selected titles and new open access books
Boydel & Brewer are offering 45% discount on selected titles until 15 August 2023 and a selection of new open access titles. See announcement for details.
New book: Legal Aid and the Future of Access to Justice by Catrina Denvir, Jacqueline Kinghan, Jessica Mant and Daniel Newman: 20% discount
This open access book provides a snapshot of the state of contemporary access to justice in England and Wales. Published by Hart: available as OA pdf or hardback. See website for details. Use the code GLR BE1UK for UK orders and GLR BE1US for US orders.
New book: Criminal Justice and The Ideal Defendant in the Making of Remorse and Responsibility, Stewart Field and Cyrus Tata (eds): 20% discount
This book, published by Hart, investigates how defendants are assessed by criminal justice decision-makers, such as judges, lawyers, probation officers, parole board members and those involved in restorative justice. What attitudes and emotions are defendants expected to show? How are these expectations communicated? The book argues that defendants, at various stages of the criminal justice process, are expected to show a (more or less) free acceptance of guilt and individual responsibility along with a display of ‘appropriate’ emotions, ideally including ‘genuine’ remorse. It examines why such expressions of individual responsibility and remorse are so important to decision-makers and the state. See website for details. Use code GLR BE1UK for UK orders and GLR BE1US for US orders to get 20% off.
Grandparents and the Law: Rights and Relationships, Samantha M Davey and Jaime Lindsey (eds): 20% discount
This book explores the theoretical and practical issues around recognising grandparents’ rights in legal proceedings. It explores whether grandparents ought to have rights in relation to their grandchildren; what the content of those rights is or ought to be; and what the appropriate role of the law is in providing solutions. The book considers these questions from both a public and a private law perspective, and in the context of the European Convention on Human Rights and the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, as well as in other jurisdictions, such as Iran, France and Nepal. See website for details. Use code GLR BE1UK for UK orders and GLR BE1US for US orders to get 20% off.
Access to Justice in Rural Communities: Global Perspectives, by Daniel Newman and Faith Gordon – 20% discount
This book offers insight on access to justice from rural areas in internationally comparable contexts to highlight the diversity of experiences within, and across, rural areas globally. By bringing in the voices and experiences of those who are often ignored or side-lined by justice systems, this book sets out an agenda for ensuring social justice in legal systems with a focus on protecting marginalised groups. See website for details. Use code GLR BE1UK for UK orders and GLR BE1US for US orders to get 20% discount at checkout.
New book: Religious Accommodation and its Limits by Farrah Raza: 20% discount available
This book offers an original model of religious accommodation which can be applied in practice in secular liberal democracies where religious diversity continues to pose various challenges. Firstly, the book makes a case for religious accommodation by addressing the key normative challenges raised by religious claims. Secondly, it offers a typology of how religious claims can be managed and limited through the careful balancing of competing interests. The author draws on case study examples from jurisdictions subject to the European Court of Human Rights and the European Union’s Court of Justice such as the UK, Germany and France. See website for details. Use code GLR BE1UK for UK orders and GLR BE1US for US orders at checkout. Published by Hart.
Journals
The Age of Human Rights Journal: call for papers
Submissions are invited for The Age of Human Rights Journal – a journal of international relevance, published in English, peer-reviewed and open-access, containing papers concerning human rights from different approaches. It is published by the University of Jaén, Spain. The journal has recently moved to a continuous publication model, meaning that the delay between acceptance and publication is considerably shorter. See submissions page for further details.
China Law and Society Review: call for papers
China Law and Society Review is now welcoming submissions for its upcoming issues. See announcement for details.
Journal of the Polish Section of the IVR: call for papers for General English issue
Submissions are invited on a wide range of topics for this forthcoming English language issue. See website for details. Call closes: 30 November 2023.
Northern Ireland Legal Quarterly: call for book reviews
The Northern Ireland Legal Quarterly is a leading peer-reviewed journal that provides an international forum for articles, commentaries and notes in all areas of legal scholarship and across a range of methodologies including doctrinal, theoretical and socio-legal. If you would like to write a review, or would like to propose a book for review, please get in touch with the book review editor
Journal of Legal Research Methodology: open call for submissions
The Journal of Legal Research Methodology, an open access, peer-reviewed journal published by Northumbria Journals has an open call for submissions. The editors invite submissions of journal articles, research reports, or think pieces, between 4000–8000 words in length. The next edition will be published at the end of 2023 and articles can be made immediately available online after acceptance. Submissions can be on any area of law and from any jurisdiction but should contain substantive consideration of legal research methodology. To find out more about the journal visit: the website and contact a member of the editorial team to discuss.
Arbitration International: call for authors
Arbitration International is a well-established, high-quality journal that provides quarterly coverage for national and international developments in the world of arbitration. It aims to maintain balance between academic debate and practical contributions to the field, providing both topical material on current developments and analytic scholarship of permanent interest. It is the official lournal of the London Court of International Arbitration. See website for further details of how to submit to the journal and the call for authors.
Northern Ireland Legal Quarterly: special issue on 'International Human Rights Law and Devolution in the UK' - just published
This special issue on 'International Human Rights Law and Devolution in the UK' was guest-edited by Jane Rooney, Durham University, and Conor McCormick, Queen's University Belfast, with a 'Preface' by Yvonne McDermott. The 'Preface' and editors' 'Introduction' are available open access as are two of the articles (one by Gregory Davies and Robert Jones; the other by Kasey McCall-Smith). See website for details.
Amicus Curiae: special issue on 'Abusive or obsessive litigation, its psychology, its impacts on justice systems, on justice and on judges' – call for proposals
On behalf of the editors of Amicus Curiae, the open access journal of the Institute of Advanced Legal Studies, School of Advanced Studies, London University, proposals are sought by authors for papers of up to 5000 words (in the range 3000-5000 words inclusive of references) for a planned Special Issue to be edited by Dr Victoria McCloud (Master McCloud, United Kingdom (UK) High Court and a Senior Associate Research Fellow at IALS, also Advisory Head of Interdisciplinary Collaboration, Euro-Expert, Sorbonne, Paris), Professor Michael Palmer (Professor, SOAS and IALS) and the Editorial Board of Amicus Curiae, on the subjects of abusive or obsessive litigation, its psychology, its impacts on justice systems, on justice and on judges. See website for details.
Asian Journal of Law and Society: special issue on 'Digital Transformation and Law in Asia' – call for contributions
Contributions are invited for this special issue which aims to provide a platform for scholars and early career researchers to engage with the socio-legal implications of digital transformation, with a particular focus on the metaverse, artificial intelligence, and other related topics in the Asian context. Original research articles that examine the legal and social dynamics of digital transformation in Asia are welcome. See website for details. Closing date: 30 September 2023.
Spatial Dynamics and Cultural Changes in Contemporary Legal Experience: call for papers for special issue of International Journal for the Semiotics of Law
Papers are invited for the special issue of International Journal for the Semiotics of Law - Revue internationale de Sémiotique juridique. See announcement for details. Closing date: 15 September 2023.
Law and Society Review: call for submissions for special issue
Submissions are invited for a special issue:
- Special Issue on Law in a Changing Climate: closing date 15 September 2023
Blogs and other online resources
Sentencing Council: research roundup
On 13 September, the Council published a research roundup summarising some of the research work it hsa recently undertaken or commissioned. See website for details.
Leverhulme Trust: Funding Bulletin
The Bulletin contains details of all the Trust's current funding rounds and fellowships.
Joseph Rowntree Foundation latest newsletter
The latest JRF newsletter is now available.
National Centre for Research Methods: latest issue of 'Methods News'
Read the latest issue including details of the Centre's many training opportunities.
Public Law Project: latest news updates
For the latest Public Law Project news. See the full bulletin here.
Academy of Social Sciences: ebulletin September 2023
See the latest AcSS ebulletin for news of all AcSS activities.
Judicial Appointments Commission: latest issue of Judging Your Future
The Judicial Appointments Commission has published its latest newsletter. See webpage for details.
Latest from People.Law.Power: Can AI discriminate?
Episode 3 of the Public Law Project podcast is now available.
The We Society podcast: Season 3 – with AcSS president Will Hutton
Join acclaimed journalist and Academy of Social Sciences (AcSS) president Will Hutton as he invites guests from the world of Social Science to explore the stories behind the news and hear their solutions to society’s most pressing problems. Listen to the first three episodes in Series 3.
Latest from the JLS Blog: Meet the Authors – Kees Huizinga and Alexander Holder
Latest from Frontiers of Socio-Legal Studies
Frontiers of Socio-Legal Studies is a blog by the Oxford Centre for Socio-Legal Studies welcoming perspectives on methods and cutting-edge research from across the socio-legal field.
Yunupingu’s Song; or, What we talk about when we talk about the constitution
Professor Desmond Manderson (ANU) reflects upon the constitutional significance of the forthcoming Australian referendum on the Voice to Parliament. Read the full blog post here, which is published as part of the blog’s Borderlands section.
If you would like to receive a summary of all Frontier’s latest posts, sign up to receive the bi-monthly newsletter here.
The blog always welcomes submissions providing analysis of recent socio-legal research, methodological issues, ethical issues, and publications from around the globe: Frontiers can be found at Frontiers of Socio-Legal Studies and on Twitter @OxfordCSLS.
Other
Analysis and Research at the Sentencing Council – September 2023
This roundup summarises some of the research work recently undertaken or commissioned by the Sentencing Council. See website for details.
The Bar of 2043: Thoughts for the future – speech by Nick Vineall KC, Chair of the Bar
This speech was given on Wednesday 13 September 2023 at the Inner Temple Hall, London.
Rapid Legal Policy Reactions and How to Do Them: new Best Practice Guide from the Doing Feminist Legal Work Network
This best practice guide, edited by Maebh Harding and Aoife O’Donoghue, brings together practical advice from legal academics about how to respond quickly to events or opportunities that could influence legal policy. It is hoped that scholars and activists will find this research tool empowering and helpful when engaging directly with policy makers and media to address complex issues of law and gender. See website to download the free guide.
Humor and Free Speech: A Comparative Analysis of Global Case Law, by Alberto Godioli and Jennifer Young
The paper Humor and Free Speech: A Comparative Analysis of Global Case Law, authored by Alberto Godioli and Jennifer Young (University of Groningen, convenors of the 'Comedy Controversies' stream at SLSA 2023), is now available as part of the Special Collection series run by Columbia Global Freedom of Expression. The paper discusses international trends and recurring issues in humour-related jurisprudence, by analysing 81 cases from across the globe. The cases are organised around five key themes, namely (1) satire, defamation and other individual dignitary harms; (2) disparaging humor and hate speech; (3) humor, violence and public unrest; (4) parody, copyright and trademarks; (5) humour and “public morals”. Please click here to download the paper.
Nuffield Foundation Annual Report 2022 published
The 2022 annual report has just been published. Tim Gardam, the Foundation's CEO, has written his reflections on last year, highlighting the Foundation’s key achievements, and sharing a preview of what to expect over the coming year. See website for details.
Runnymede Trust: latest news
The Runnymede Trust has published its latest newsletter.
Academy of Social Sciences: ebulletin June 2023
See the latest ebulletin for a round-up of AcSS activities.
AcSS Policy Monitor: June
Read the June Policy Monitor to see and respond to the summary of latest consultations across England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.