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Women in Legal Philosophy
About Us
Our mission is to promote and support women in legal philosophy and legal theory, broadly defined, by providing a means by which women involved in legal philosophy using methods broadly construed as analytic can meet, virtually and in person, to work out new arguments and exchange ideas. To this end, our aim is to provide a work-in-progress online session every six months, a biennial in-person conference hosted in venues alternating between North America and the United Kingdom, and a mentoring network for students and junior faculty that will address the full range of women's career interests and concerns in the field.
Executive Committee
Amalia Amaya
University of Edinburgh
Amalia Amaya is British Academy Global Professor at the School of law of the University of Edinburgh and Research Professor at the Institute for Philosophical Research of the National Autonomous University of Mexico.
She has a B. A. in Law from the University of Alicante and a B.A. in Linguistics from the University of Barcelone and holds an LLM and a PhD from the European University Institute and an LLM and a SJD from Harvard Law School.
Her current research explores the relations between virtue, law, and political community, with a special focus on legal reasoning and judicial ethics. She is also interested in examining the role of exemplarity in legal and political culture, the ideal of fraternity, and ambivalence in legal decision-making.
Amalia Amaya is British Academy Global Professor at the School of law of the University of Edinburgh and Research Professor at the Institute for Philosophical Research of the National Autonomous University of Mexico.
She has a B. A. in Law from the University of Alicante and a B.A. in Linguistics from the University of Barcelone and holds an LLM and a PhD from the European University Institute and an LLM and a SJD from Harvard Law School.
Her current research explores the relations between virtue, law, and political community, with a special focus on legal reasoning and judicial ethics. She is also interested in examining the role of exemplarity in legal and political culture, the ideal of fraternity, and ambivalence in legal decision-making.
Laura Biron-Scott
St Augustine's College of Theology
Laura Biron-Scott studied Philosophy at Queens' College, Cambridge, and at Harvard on a Kennedy Scholarship. She completed a PhD in Philosophy at St John's College, Cambridge, before taking up a Junior Research Fellowship in Philosophy of Law at Queens' College, where she was also affiliated to the Centre for Intellectual Property and Information Law.
Laura has worked as a Greenwall Fellow in Bioethics and Health Policy at Johns Hopkins University, an assistant Professor of Philosophy at the University of Virginia, and a Lecturer in Philosophy at the University of Kent. Laura recently trained for ordained ministry in the Church of England and is currently a priest in Oxford Diocese and an honorary chaplain of Magdalen College, Oxford.
Her research focuses on the intersection between philosophy, law, and public policy, with a particular focus on the nature and justification of intellectual property. Laura's wider research interests include philosophy of religion, aesthetics, and environmental ethics.
Laura Biron-Scott studied Philosophy at Queens' College, Cambridge, and at Harvard on a Kennedy Scholarship. She completed a PhD in Philosophy at St John's College, Cambridge, before taking up a Junior Research Fellowship in Philosophy of Law at Queens' College, where she was also affiliated to the Centre for Intellectual Property and Information Law.
Laura has worked as a Greenwall Fellow in Bioethics and Health Policy at Johns Hopkins University, an assistant Professor of Philosophy at the University of Virginia, and a Lecturer in Philosophy at the University of Kent. Laura recently trained for ordained ministry in the Church of England and is currently a priest in Oxford Diocese and an honorary chaplain of Magdalen College, Oxford.
Her research focuses on the intersection between philosophy, law, and public policy, with a particular focus on the nature and justification of intellectual property. Laura's wider research interests include philosophy of religion, aesthetics, and environmental ethics.
Bebhinn Donnelly-Lazarov
University of Surrey
Bebhinn joined the Surrey School of Law in September 2017. She moved from Swansea University, where she was a Professor in the College of Law and Criminology. Bebhinn is a graduate of Trinity College Dublin (where she was an exhibitioner), The Inns of Court School of Law, and Birmingham University. She is a member of Middle Temple and the Bar of Northern Ireland.
Her research has straddled a number of substantive fields including criminal law, international law, and environmental law but the focus is always a philosophical one, where the aim is to elucidate law's underlying concepts and normative rationales. Her book on criminal attempts, published by Cambridge University Press in 2015, is structured around an Anscombian account of intentional action. Recent and ongoing work explores our understanding of the mind and considers its implications for criminal responsibility, mens rea, omissions, and for defences. Bebhinn has begun to write a book on law, knowledge and consciousness.
Bebhinn joined the Surrey School of Law in September 2017. She moved from Swansea University, where she was a Professor in the College of Law and Criminology. Bebhinn is a graduate of Trinity College Dublin (where she was an exhibitioner), The Inns of Court School of Law, and Birmingham University. She is a member of Middle Temple and the Bar of Northern Ireland.
Her research has straddled a number of substantive fields including criminal law, international law, and environmental law but the focus is always a philosophical one, where the aim is to elucidate law's underlying concepts and normative rationales. Her book on criminal attempts, published by Cambridge University Press in 2015, is structured around an Anscombian account of intentional action. Recent and ongoing work explores our understanding of the mind and considers its implications for criminal responsibility, mens rea, omissions, and for defences. Bebhinn has begun to write a book on law, knowledge and consciousness.
Claire Hogg
UCL
Claire Hogg is a research fellow in law and philosophy at UCL, working on the ERC-funded project Roots of Responsibility. She completed her PhD in Law at King’s College London, under a Dickson Poon Scholarship. Prior to this, she obtained a BA and a BPhil in Philosophy from the University of Oxford, and an MA in Medical Ethics and Law from King’s College London.
Her main areas of interest are criminal law and legal theory, medical law (most specifically mental health and capacity law), and moral philosophy. In particular, her research focuses on mental disorder as a factor relevant to culpability determinations within the criminal law, with a focus on doctrines of legal “insanity”.
Claire Hogg is a research fellow in law and philosophy at UCL, working on the ERC-funded project Roots of Responsibility. She completed her PhD in Law at King’s College London, under a Dickson Poon Scholarship. Prior to this, she obtained a BA and a BPhil in Philosophy from the University of Oxford, and an MA in Medical Ethics and Law from King’s College London.
Her main areas of interest are criminal law and legal theory, medical law (most specifically mental health and capacity law), and moral philosophy. In particular, her research focuses on mental disorder as a factor relevant to culpability determinations within the criminal law, with a focus on doctrines of legal “insanity”.
Barbara B. Levenbook
North Carolina State University
Barbara Baum Levenbook is Professor Emerita in the Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies at North Carolina State University. Her articles on legal philosophy have appeared in Legal Theory, Law and Philosophy, The Canadian Journal of Philosophy, Jurisprudence, and law reviews. In other journals, she has published essays in social and political philosophy, in normative ethics, and in its intersection with metaphysics.
In addition, she has contributed and continues to contribute to philosophical anthologies, including Oxford Studies in Philosophy of Law (volume 2), Pragmatism, Law, and Language, The Cambridge Companion to Legal Positivism, New Essays on the Nature of Legal Reasoning and Philosophical Foundations of Precedent. She is a contributing editor to Jotwell: Jurisprudence and is the author of an article in Philosophy of Law: An Encyclopedia, edited by Christopher Gray.
She holds a B.A. and an M.A. in philosophy from the University of Rochester and a Ph. D. in philosophy from the University of Arizona.
Barbara Baum Levenbook is Professor Emerita in the Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies at North Carolina State University. Her articles on legal philosophy have appeared in Legal Theory, Law and Philosophy, The Canadian Journal of Philosophy, Jurisprudence, and law reviews. In other journals, she has published essays in social and political philosophy, in normative ethics, and in its intersection with metaphysics.
In addition, she has contributed and continues to contribute to philosophical anthologies, including Oxford Studies in Philosophy of Law (volume 2), Pragmatism, Law, and Language, The Cambridge Companion to Legal Positivism, New Essays on the Nature of Legal Reasoning and Philosophical Foundations of Precedent. She is a contributing editor to Jotwell: Jurisprudence and is the author of an article in Philosophy of Law: An Encyclopedia, edited by Christopher Gray.
She holds a B.A. and an M.A. in philosophy from the University of Rochester and a Ph. D. in philosophy from the University of Arizona.
Michelle Dempsey
Villanova University
Michelle Madden Dempsey is the Harold Reuschlein Scholar Chair and Professor of Law at Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law, near Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA.
She is a former criminal prosecutor and tort trial lawyer. Her scholarship focuses on the intersection of criminal law and gender-related violence, with occasional forays into general jurisprudence.
She serves as the co-editor-in-chief (with Matt Matravers, York) of the journal, Criminal Law & Philosophy (Springer) and is the co-general-editor (with Jeremy Horder, LSE) of the Oxford Monographs on Criminal Law & Criminal Justice (OUP).
She holds a BA in Philosophy from University of Illinois, a JD from University of Michigan, an LLM from London School of Economics & Political Science (LSE), and a DPhil from University of Oxford. Prior to joining Villanova, she was a CUF Lecturer in Law & Tutorial Fellow at University of Oxford.
Michelle Madden Dempsey is the Harold Reuschlein Scholar Chair and Professor of Law at Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law, near Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA.
She is a former criminal prosecutor and tort trial lawyer. Her scholarship focuses on the intersection of criminal law and gender-related violence, with occasional forays into general jurisprudence.
She serves as the co-editor-in-chief (with Matt Matravers, York) of the journal, Criminal Law & Philosophy (Springer) and is the co-general-editor (with Jeremy Horder, LSE) of the Oxford Monographs on Criminal Law & Criminal Justice (OUP).
She holds a BA in Philosophy from University of Illinois, a JD from University of Michigan, an LLM from London School of Economics & Political Science (LSE), and a DPhil from University of Oxford. Prior to joining Villanova, she was a CUF Lecturer in Law & Tutorial Fellow at University of Oxford.
Marie Newhouse
University of Surrey
Marie Newhouse is an Associate Professor (Reader) in Law, Philosophy, and Public Policy at the University of Surrey.
Her research focuses on legal philosophy, especially Kantian accounts of legal obligation, the nature and limits of the state's legislative authority, and criminal wrongdoing. She also sometimes writes about institutional corruption.
She holds a B.A. in political science from the University of Washington, a J.D. from the University of Washington School of Law, and a Ph.D. in public policy from Harvard University.
Marie Newhouse is an Associate Professor (Reader) in Law, Philosophy, and Public Policy at the University of Surrey.
Her research focuses on legal philosophy, especially Kantian accounts of legal obligation, the nature and limits of the state's legislative authority, and criminal wrongdoing. She also sometimes writes about institutional corruption.
She holds a B.A. in political science from the University of Washington, a J.D. from the University of Washington School of Law, and a Ph.D. in public policy from Harvard University.
Filipa Paes
University of Oxford
Filipa is currently a DPhil student at the University of Oxford, under the supervision of Professor Timothy Endicott.
Filipa's research focuses on law and language, paying particular attention to ambiguity and mistakes in language. Her wider research interests fall within analytic jurisprudence, philosophy of language and philosophical logic. She is particularly interested in word-meaning and conceptual analysis. Filipa currently co-convenes the Oxford Jurisprudence Discussion Group (2023-2024).
Prior to her doctoral studies, she studied law at undergraduate level at Kent Law School, from where she graduated in 2022.
Filipa is currently a DPhil student at the University of Oxford, under the supervision of Professor Timothy Endicott.
Filipa's research focuses on law and language, paying particular attention to ambiguity and mistakes in language. Her wider research interests fall within analytic jurisprudence, philosophy of language and philosophical logic. She is particularly interested in word-meaning and conceptual analysis. Filipa currently co-convenes the Oxford Jurisprudence Discussion Group (2023-2024).
Prior to her doctoral studies, she studied law at undergraduate level at Kent Law School, from where she graduated in 2022.
Veronica Rodriguez-Blanco
University of Surrey
Rodriguez-Blanco is Professor in Moral and Political Philosophy (Jurisprudence) at the University of Surrey Centre for Law and Philosophy.
She studied law and philosophy at the University of Oxford (MJur) and the University of Cambridge (Ph.D.).
Her current research scrutinises classical and medieval philosophical reflections on practical reason to shed light on private law and the nature of legal authority. She is the author of four books published in Hart/Bloomsbury, OUP and CUP, and numerous journal articles in prestigious journals in legal philosophy.
Rodriguez-Blanco is Professor in Moral and Political Philosophy (Jurisprudence) at the University of Surrey Centre for Law and Philosophy.
She studied law and philosophy at the University of Oxford (MJur) and the University of Cambridge (Ph.D.).
Her current research scrutinises classical and medieval philosophical reflections on practical reason to shed light on private law and the nature of legal authority. She is the author of four books published in Hart/Bloomsbury, OUP and CUP, and numerous journal articles in prestigious journals in legal philosophy.
Katharina Stevens
University of Lethbridge
Katharina Stevens is an associate professor of philosophy at the University of Lethbridge, where she has been since 2017. After completing her Ph.D. on reasoning by precedent in 2016 at McMaster University, she spent one year at the NYU Law School as a Dworkin-Balzan Postdoctoral Fellow. Currently, she is holding a Board of Governor's Research Chair in Argumentation Ethics at her home-university.
Katharina's research is fairly evenly divided between legal theory and argumentation theory. Her publications are predominantly about common-law reasoning and the ethics of argumentation. Currently, she is working on a monograph on the role-ethics of argumentation and an associated textbook for an ethics-module in undergraduate critical-thinking classes. In the future, she hopes to combine her work on reasoning by precedent into a monograph on arguments from precedent in and outside the law.
Katharina Stevens is an associate professor of philosophy at the University of Lethbridge, where she has been since 2017. After completing her Ph.D. on reasoning by precedent in 2016 at McMaster University, she spent one year at the NYU Law School as a Dworkin-Balzan Postdoctoral Fellow. Currently, she is holding a Board of Governor's Research Chair in Argumentation Ethics at her home-university.
Katharina's research is fairly evenly divided between legal theory and argumentation theory. Her publications are predominantly about common-law reasoning and the ethics of argumentation. Currently, she is working on a monograph on the role-ethics of argumentation and an associated textbook for an ethics-module in undergraduate critical-thinking classes. In the future, she hopes to combine her work on reasoning by precedent into a monograph on arguments from precedent in and outside the law.
Jean Thomas
Queen's University
Jean Thomas is Associate Professor of Law, and by courtesy in Philosophy, at Queen's University in Kingston. She did graduate work in English literature before turning to law, studying in Toronto for her MA and JD and then at NYU for her LLM and JSD. She was a post-doctoral fellow at Stanford University's Bowen Center for Ethics in Society, and at the European University Institute.
Her research interests include tort and private law theory, general jurisprudence, and political and moral philosophy. She teaches in torts and co-convenes the Queen's Colloquium in Legal and Political Philosophy, and co-organizes an online project called 'Tort Law and Social Equality'.
Jean Thomas is Associate Professor of Law, and by courtesy in Philosophy, at Queen's University in Kingston. She did graduate work in English literature before turning to law, studying in Toronto for her MA and JD and then at NYU for her LLM and JSD. She was a post-doctoral fellow at Stanford University's Bowen Center for Ethics in Society, and at the European University Institute.
Her research interests include tort and private law theory, general jurisprudence, and political and moral philosophy. She teaches in torts and co-convenes the Queen's Colloquium in Legal and Political Philosophy, and co-organizes an online project called 'Tort Law and Social Equality'.
Aness Webster
University of Durham
Aness Kim Webster is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Philosophy at Durham University, having received her PhD from University of Southern California.
She specialises in value theory broadly construed including philosophy of agency and responsibility, philosophy of race and intersectional feminism, and philosophy of emotions. Her work in legal philosophy focuses on criminal law and tort law, in particular the distinction between criminal and tort law as well as responsibility in tort and criminal law.
Aness Kim Webster is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Philosophy at Durham University, having received her PhD from University of Southern California.
She specialises in value theory broadly construed including philosophy of agency and responsibility, philosophy of race and intersectional feminism, and philosophy of emotions. Her work in legal philosophy focuses on criminal law and tort law, in particular the distinction between criminal and tort law as well as responsibility in tort and criminal law.
Kara Woodbury-Smith
York University
Kara is a Visiting Researcher with the Department of Philosophy at York University. Previously (2020-2024), she was an Assistant Professor of Legal Theory at Durham Law School (Durham, UK), where she founded the Durham Centre for Law and Philosophy.
She has a BA in Psychology from Hobart and William Smith Colleges (2004), an MA in Ethics and the Philosophy of Theology from King’s College, London (2007), and a PhD in Philosophy from McMaster University (2020) where she studied under the supervision of Wil Waluchow.
Whilst Kara's philosophical interests are varied, she tends to write on general jurisprudence, the nature of coercion, how coercion and law conceptually relate, and how they should come together in legal practice.
Kara is a Visiting Researcher with the Department of Philosophy at York University. Previously (2020-2024), she was an Assistant Professor of Legal Theory at Durham Law School (Durham, UK), where she founded the Durham Centre for Law and Philosophy.
She has a BA in Psychology from Hobart and William Smith Colleges (2004), an MA in Ethics and the Philosophy of Theology from King’s College, London (2007), and a PhD in Philosophy from McMaster University (2020) where she studied under the supervision of Wil Waluchow.
Whilst Kara's philosophical interests are varied, she tends to write on general jurisprudence, the nature of coercion, how coercion and law conceptually relate, and how they should come together in legal practice.
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