Research Interests
Open to PhD applications in:
- Transitional justice
- Counter-terrorism and human rights
- Feminist legal theory
- Gender justice
- Law of armed conflict
Public outreach & key achievements
2021: Peer Reviewer, ICRC Commentaries Update Project: Peer Review of the Fourth Geneva Convention
2020: Advisor, Afghan Negotiation Team and State Ministry for Peace (Justice and Reconciliation)
2019: Appointed as Fellow to the Royal Irish Academy
2017: Appointed as United Nations Special Rapporteur on Counterterrorism and Human Rights (3-year term) by the UN Human Rights Council (http://www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/Terrorism/Pages/SRTerrorismIndex.aspx As mandate holder, the Special Rapporteur is also an entity within the UN Counter-Terrorism Architecture
2018: Member of the Irish Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade Committee on Human Rights
2018: Member of the Women’s Program Board, Open Society Foundation (Soros Foundation)
2016: Elected to the American Law Institute
2016: Appointed as Reparations Expert to the International Criminal Court in the case of Al-Madhi
2016-2022: Member of International Steering Board, European Research Council Consolidator Grant, A Comparative Study of Resilience in Survivors of War Rape and Sexual Violence: New Directions for Transitional Justice
2016-: Advisory Board Member, Christian Aid Programme on Tackling Violence and Building Peace
2016-: Advisory Board Member, Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security
2015-: Board Member, Center for Victims of Torture National Advisory Council
2015-: Expert/Consultant, Trust Fund for Victims International Criminal Court
2015-: Expert, Council of Europe, HELP Project on Transitional Justice
2013-2014: Co-Chair Annual Meeting of the American Society of International Law and International Law Association
2013-2014: Member, Research Advisory Board, Christian Aid (Ireland)
2011-2012: Consultant, UN Women and the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (UN Study on Reparations for Conflict Related Sexual Violence)
2011-2018: Chair, Women’s Program Board, Open Society Foundation (Soros Foundation)
2010: Roster of Experts, United Nations Crisis Communications Unit
2007: Nominated by the Irish Government as Justice to the European Court of Human Rights
2004: Nominated by the Irish Government as Justice to the European Court of Human Rights
2003-04: Nominated by the UNs Division for the Advancement of Women and confirmed by the UN Secretary-General to serve as an expert to the UN Commission on the Status of Women, for its 2002-2006 thematic work on the equal participation of women in conflict prevention, management and conflict resolution and in post-conflict peace-building
2000-2005: Commissioner Irish Human Rights Commission (appointed by Irish government following the Good Friday/Belfast Peace Agreement)
2000-2005: Member of the Joint Committee of Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission and Irish Commission for Human Rights created by the Good Friday/Belfast Peace Agreement
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Get ahead: tips on how to prepare your application to study for a PhD at QUB Law
Read our on the steps in our PhD applications process and how to present your research proposal.
Interested in a postdoctoral fellowship at QUB Law?
If you have already completed a PhD or are about to do so, and you are looking for a mentor for a postdoctoral fellowship in one of my areas of expertise, please get in touch via email. The School of Law has a strong track record in supporting able candidates who are working towards fellowship applications to funders such as the British Academy, EU Marie Sklodowska-Curie scheme, ESRC NINE and the Leverhulme Trust.