Philip Edwards

My research centres on the interaction between the rule of law, the citizen considered as law's autonomous subject, and the threat of extremism and terrorism which may justify coercive, preventive and un-lawlike measures. A theme of my work is the labelling and management of terrorism and 'extremism', and the attendant 'perversions and subversions' of the criminal law.

My more theoretical work interrogates the liberal ideal of the rule of law, asking whether it can offer a critical lens on the governance of problematic and disruptive behaviours. The overall agenda is both analytical and normative; it offers resources for a critique of arbitrary and unlawlike forms of behaviour control, but also offers input into policy discussions on ways to promote desistance from disorderly activities and counter genuinely problematic forms of 'radicalisation'.