Research writing
In addition to the regular School of Law and Social Justice blog, academics from Liverpool Law School and the Department of Sociology, Social Policy, and Criminology will sometimes discuss in more detail a topic that relates to an area of their research expertise. These 'Research Writing' long reads will often also respond to world events. Links and references are provided for further reading.
Biggest write-off in corporate history? Coronavirus support abuse by Directors
How coronavirus support abuse by Directors raises a wider systemic problem with Director behaviour.
Cats and dogs and smoke and mirrors: What’s really at stake in the Government’s ‘overhaul’ of the Human Rights Act?
This Human Rights Day, Professor Nicola Barker considers who is most at risk in the forthcoming 'overhaul' of the Human Rights Act and reviews the fake or misleading stories of immigrants used to stroke racist outrage.
Punishing rape
On 3rd October 2021, then UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson appeared on the BBC’s Andrew Marr Show. It was just a few days after Wayne Couzens, a serving Metropolitan police officer, had been given a whole life sentence for the kidnap, rape and murder of Sarah Everard.
Suicide and political crisis
What do young people think about protest-related suicided in Hong Kong?
Inside the English Education Lab
For over 20 years, reform in the English education system has been dramatic. The introduction of the academies programme has seen a complete restructuring of the way schools in England are run and governed.
What is the meaning of old age?
What is the meaning of old age? As a small child spending my holidays in the company of an 80-year-old grandmother, this was my version of the question: ‘What is the meaning of life?’
The spectacle of small boats and the new meaning of 'illegality'
In British media, the public is regularly confronted with the image of migrants arriving by boat at the shores of the state. The image is a variation of a familiar tableau – a group of often racialised people in life-jackets aboard a small boat, sometimes being helped aboard a lifeboat that will bring them to Britain.
Can same-sex marriage be revoked?: Ferguson and others v the United Kingdom
This year marks the tenth anniversary of the introduction of same-sex marriage in England and Wales, but how secure are LGBT+ rights once they have been granted?
Climate crisis: Extinction Rebellion radio
Runaway global heating threatens most life on earth. If you think this is an over-statement, check the last few reports from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and consider that humanity is increasing its fossil fuel consumption, not decreasing it.
International Day of Peace 2023 - From symbolism to a call for action: Human rights and sustainable development for peace
Each year the International Day of Peace (IDP) is observed around the world on 21 September. Every year the Peace Bell Ceremony is held in the Peace Garden at United Nations Headquarters.
Haunting tales: Exploring the ghosts of Australia's prisons
The air shimmers as I walk up a winding drive, shaded by red gums. As my 23-year-old self crosses the threshold, I shiver. Rows of heads gleam hunched over dusty tomes. Everyone here is researching the dead.
Hags and short-lived queens: Can we overcome generational antagonisms between women?
Earlier this year, Victoria Smith’s polemic, Hags: the demonisation of middle-aged women, came out to considerable and well-deserved acclaim.
Expert analysis: The Supreme Court rules the UK-Rwanda policy unlawful
The background to this ruling came from an appeal concerned with the Home Office’s policy that asylum seekers in the UK shouldn’t have their claims considered in this county but should instead be sent to Rwanda to claim asylum there.
The Ageing of Simone de Beauvoir
For most of her life, Simone de Beauvoir feared and loathed the idea of ageing so much that she could see no good in it at all.
The end of the pilot stage: The long and winding road to drug checking in the UK
Saturday 27th January 2024 is a red-letter day for drug checking and for harm reduction more generally in the UK.
The importance of individual stories in understanding health and social care: A personal viewpoint
The ‘story’ is an important instrument in qualitative research about long term conditions.
Reforming the EU ‘Facilitators’ Package’: The new Commission proposal in the light of the Kinshasa litigation
A key feature of the EU policy to prevent migrants from reaching the EU external border has been the criminalisation – and in essence the overcriminalisation- of facilitation of unauthorised entry, transit and stay.
A ray of light in dark times: On the importance of the Case of Ukraine and the Netherlands v. Russia
In early 2022, Kanstantsin Dzehtsiarou and Vassilis Tzevelekos wrote about the return to dark times. The authors applied the phrase “dark hours” to describe the war in Ukraine and the threat to the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR, the Convention) values, which came with it.
Changing expressions of filial piety and forms of intergenerational solidarity in neoliberal India
There are mixed views about care homes for older people (commonly referred to as ‘old age homes’) in India.
'Size matters': High strength ecstasy pills are back, so harm reduction communications need to adapt
The Loop’s dedicated multidisciplinary team of chemists, health professionals, researchers and media officers returns to the fields this summer, delivering harm reduction services onsite at UK music festivals and issuing alerts and community information posts where useful, to enhance the safety of revellers up and down the country.
Daughters as later-life caregivers: A cultural shift in later-life care in India
Later-life care in India is mostly the responsibility of adult sons and their spouses. Although legally daughters are also obligated to look after their older parents, nonetheless, culturally the expectation is from the son and his spouse.
Can disruptive technologies and cybersecurity laws work together? Unpacking the legal puzzle
Disruptive technologies like blockchain, artificial intelligence, and digital identity systems are revolutionising finance, governance, and data security.