PUBLICATIONS
In this section we feature the latest socio-legal publications, including books, journals and reports, blogs, newsletters and other online resources.
If you would like your publication added to this page, please contact Marie Selwood.
SOCIO-LEGAL BOOKS
Deserted Wives and Economic Divorce in 19th-Century England and Wales: ‘For Wives Alone’
Jennifer Aston and Olive Anderson
This book considers Section 21 of the Divorce and Matrimonial Causes Act 1857 and its significant impact on previously invisible married women in the 19th century.
Tens of thousands of women used this little-known section of the…
The Cambridge Handbook of the Governance of Technology
edited by Roger Brownsword and Larry A DiMatteo
In recent years, the use of AI has skyrocketed. The introduction of widely available generative AI, such as ChatGPT, has reinvigorated concerns for harm caused to users. Yet so far government bodies and scholarly literature have failed…
Narratives of Consent and Reproductive Subjects: Tales of Invisibility
Samantha Halliday, Rebecca Brione and Jacqueline Nicholls
Consent is the golden principle that determines the legality of most medical treatment. However, whilst choice is the much-vaunted central tenet of maternity care, its importance emphasised in policy documents, the lived experience is often rather different,…
Consenting Children: Autonomy, Responsibility, Well-Being
edited by Lisa Forsberg, Isra Black and Anthony Skelton
Children are treated differently compared to adults in many domains, including in health care, education, employment, and criminal justice. The differential treatment of children – to adults, and in the case of younger children and adolescents, to…
JOURNALS AND REPORTS
Northern Ireland Legal Quarterly: Special issue on 'Reform of the 1998 Belfast/Good Friday Agreement' – just published
The special issue, edited by Katie A Johnston, University of Liverpool, came out of a workshop held at the University of Liverpool in April 2024 which brought together academics and practitioners from the UK, Ireland and beyond, to discuss ‘Legal Aspects of Reform…
Amicus Curiae: call for papers
Amicus Curiae, the official Journal of the Society for Advanced Legal Studies, published by the Institute of Advanced Legal Studies, is open for submissions. The journal serves as a lively and informative publication for raising and exploring important legal issues. Contributors over recent years…
Stripped: The Citizenship Divide: Runnymede Trust report
New research exposes racist reality of UK citizenship stripping laws that place 3 in 5 people of colour are at risk. See website for details and to read the full report.
Analysis and Research at the Sentencing Council – Roundup December 2025
The Sentencing Council’s December 2025 roundup summarises some of the latest analysis and research work carried out or commissioned by the Council to inform the development and evaluation of sentencing guidelines.
System Overload: A Report on Family Legal Aid
This Bar Council report has examined the changing conditions of publicly funded work for family legal aid barristers. It reveals that many would leave family legal aid ‘in a heartbeat’.
UKRI publishes corporate plan 2025 to 2026
This corporate plan update sets the UKRI's ambitions, new objectives and key results for 2025 to 2026, and explains how they will be delivered through its allocation from the 2024 spending review. See website for details.
Amicus Curiae 7.1 published including special sections from the Queer Judgments Project and IALS LHub
The latest issue of the open access journal Amicus Curiae has been edited by Dr Maria Federica Moscati. Among its wide-ranging content it features a special section on the Queer Judgments Project, edited by Katie Jukes and Alex Powell, and another on Law’s Spaces and…
Progressing Inclusivity in the Social Sciences: Showcasing the Positive Impact of the Academy’s Joint EDI Project
The Academy of Social Sciences has published a short report highlighting the outputs from its joint EDI Project in partnership with its member societies and the UKRI Economic and Social Research Council.
Visit the website for further details.
Publishing Futures: new report from Cambridge University Press
Earlier this year Cambridge University Press conducted a radical, community-led review of the open research publishing ecosystem. The aim was to identify bold, workable solutions that support innovation and meet the evolving needs of all stakeholders. The findings of the review have now been…
Life in the Law 2025: report published
From January to March 2025, LawCare surveyed individuals and organisations across the sector about how working in law is affecting mental health and wellbeing.
Life in the Law 2025 sets out practical steps towards a healthier future and shows how, with strong leadership and…
Journal of Creative Research Methods: first issue published
The first issue of the Journal of Creative Research Methods, founded by Helen Kara FAcSS, has been published by Bristol University Press. To mark its publication, the first issue is open access until 31 December 2025. Read the first issue and find out more…
Special Issue of Feminist Legal Studies: call for papers
Expressions of interested are invited for this special issue of Feminist Legal Studies on 'Feminist Responses to the Regression of Trans Rights: Strategies, Alliances, Hope' edited by Matilda Arvidsson, Nicola Barker and Loveday C Hodson.
And see website. Closing date for EOIs and abstracts:…
Nuffield Family Justice Observatory: report and briefing paper
The Nuffield FJO has published a report and supporting briefing paper exploring lessons that the family justice system could learn from the way data is used in the youth justice system. It also published a briefing paper examining the patterns around the increasing number…
Public Right to Justice: Essay Collection
What does it mean to have a true right to justice in a modern democracy? And is our justice system in England and Wales delivering on that promise?
Why Justice Matters, edited by Tom Clark, brings together leading voices from academia, policy and practice…
BLOGS, NEWSLETTERS AND OTHER ONLINE RESOURCES
Leverhulme Trust: December ebulletin
This month's ebulletin contains a roundup of activities from the Trust's centenary year.
We Society: the AcSS Blog – Season 9
We Society: the AcSS Blog Season 9 has come to a close. All the episodes featuring ACSS President Will Hutton and guests are available on the website.
Public Law Project: December newsletter
Truth and Trust: The Role of Social Science in a Divided World, recording of AcSS Annual Sage Lecture
The Honourable Julia Gillard AC, 27th Prime Minister of Australia and Chair of the Global Institute for Women’s Leadership, delivered this lecture at King’s College London for the Academy of Social Sciences.
See website for details.
Latest from Frontiers of Socio-Legal Studies: Vanishing Libraries: Technofeudalism and the Illusory Promise of Digital Ownership
Aniq Jiwani discusses the perils of technofeudalism and the changing nature of ownership in digital spaces. Read the full article here, which is published as part of the blog's Borderlands section.
SAFI Newsletter end of 2025
This is the final newsletter of the year from SAFI – the interdisciplinary network for women in legal academia.
Four New 'Meet the JLS Author' Posts on the JLS Blog
Joseph Rowntree Foundation: latest newsletter
The monthly newsletter has the latest from Joseph Rowntree Foundation.
Judicial Appointments Commission: latest newsletter
The latest issue of Judging Your Future is now available.
Nuffield Foundation: November newsletter
Nuffield Foundation Racial Diversity UK Event – recording now available
The Racial Diversity UK (RDUK) programme funds research on building a racially just and inclusive society. Bringing together researchers, policymakers, and practitioners, the event examined how historical and contemporary patterns of migration and settlement relate to the UK’s population today and featured two panels, including the first recipients of grants from the RDUK fund.
The recording is available here.
National Centre for Research Method: latest news
The latest issue of the NCRM's newsletter, Methods News, is now available.
Oxford Intersections: new concept in interdisciplinary academic publishing from OUP
Oxford Intersections is a new concept in interdisciplinary academic publishing that provides access to large, interdisciplinary works, with each focused on a complex, global topic. See announcement for further details.
NILQ Reflections on Writing: new contribution by Alison Liebling
In the fifteenth article in this series, Alison Liebling, University of Cambridge, explores the emotional side of her most recent writing journey and describes not only the joy of the process, but also how so-called 'negative' feelings can become sources of creativity as well: 'Treating love, joy, anxiety, anger and pain as scholarly allies'.
British Academy: Living with the Planet season newsletter
The British Academy's autumn season, Living with the Planet explores the latest research around climate action to inspire fresh ideas on more connected, sustainable ways of living.
New on the JLS Blog: Meet the JLS Author – Laura Rakotomalala
Read the latest 'Meet the JLS Author' post: 'Hegemony as Promises: Rationalizing Restrictiveness and the Legal Consciousness of Asylum Seekers in Belgium' by Laura Rakotomalala.
Enlivening Legal Education through The Postal Museum: new online resource
Amanda Perry-Kessaris, Kent, Emily Allbon, City St George’s and Susannah Coster, The Postal Museum, have designed a guide to support their academic collaborators in searching The Postal Museum collection for items that might enliven education in core legal subjects. They welcome feedback from anyone with an interest in legal education and/or archives and museums, and/or collaborative research. Further information and the guide are available here.
Academy of Social Sciences: ebulletin December 2025
Read all the latest news from the Academy of Social Sciences in the December ebulletin.
JRF Monthly Newsletter: November
This month's Joseph Rowntree Foundation newsletter includes publication of the Poverty in Scotland Report 2025.
AHRC: Evolving follow-on funding to realise new possibilities
In this blog, Paris Seager, AHRC Senior Investment Lead, explains how the Arts and Humanities Research Council’s (AHRC) follow-on funding (FoF) scheme is evolving. Find out what is changing, why it matters and how to apply.
The scheme will be launched in January 2026. See website for details.