ºÚÁÏÍø

Biography

I have been a lecturer in private law at the ºÚÁÏÍø since February 2022. I am the Co-Director, with Dr JP Fassnidge, of the Centre for Scots Law and the Principal Investigator of the Royal Society of Edinburgh Death and Law: Interdisciplinary Explorations project. I am the senior personal tutor for the School of Law. With Dr Alice Krzanich, I will be one of the co-organisers of the British Legal History Conference in July 2028. 

Research Overview

My research interests relate broadly to the influence of the Roman (or Civil law) tradition in Scots private law. I am particularly interested in the impact of Roman-Dutch juristic ideas on the development of Scots law during the 17th-18th centuries. 

In recent years I have published articles on duties of good faith in contract, third party rights in contract, the remedy of retention for breach of contract, and the protection of privacy in the law of delict. 

My current focus is on the historical development of damages in solatium (for pain, suffering or hurt feelings) in Scots law. I am also working on a comparison of the English and Scottish approaches to equality of exchange in contract. 

As part of the Death & Law: Interdisciplinary Explorations group, I focus on the private law implications of death in Scotland. This includes a wide variety of issues, such as damages in solatium for the grief and distress of family members after a wrongful death, succession to the deceased's estate, the legal status of human remains and the sepulchral rights of family members.  

Funding and Grants

Clark Foundation Grant for a Scottish Universities Roman Law Moot (2022)

Scottish Universities Law Institute Early Career Fellowship (2023) 

Aberdeen Humanities Fund Grant (Principal Investigator) (2025) 

Royal Society of Edinburgh Research Collaboration Grant (Principal Investigator) (2026) 

Teaching Responsibilities

I teach across a wide range of private law courses in all four years of the LLB programme, including both Scots and English private law courses. I am currently the course coordinator for LS2031 Law of Property, LS2537 Tort in Comparative Context and LS453K Property Law (Honours).