Maurice Sunkin

Maurice Sunkin is a Professor in the School of Law. He is General Editor of the journal Public Law and an Associate Member of Landmark Chambers, London. For the parliamentary session 2013-2014 he served as Legal Adviser to the House of Lords Select Committee on the Constitution. His past university posts include: Director of Research in the School of Law (2007-14); Dean of the School of Law (2006-07) and the Faculty of Law and Management (2006-7); University of Essex Appeals Officer/Ombudsman (2002-04); and Head of the Department of Law (1997-2000). He has been a Trustee and management committee member of the Public Law Project (2000-11). His advisory work includes acting as adviser to the Equality and Human Rights Commission regarding its report on human rights in the UK (2011-12) and as academic legal advisor to the Whitehall Working Group on Crown Immunity (2002). Before coming to Essex in 1989 he taught at the Polytechnic of the South Bank and served as Head of School of Law (1981-3).

Professor Sunkin's current research work includes leading a nation wide project based at Essex to establish the United Kingdom Administrative Justice Institute. This Nuffield Funded initiative brings together academic researchers (from across disciplines), users of administrative justice and practitioners in order to develop research on issues of importance to users of the administrative justice system and other stakeholders.

Professor Sunkin's principal research interests are concerned with access and use of judicial review, the dynamics of public law (including human rights) litigation, and the impact of litigation and judicial decisions on public bodies and the quality of public services. He also has research interests in the field of administrative justice. He has led ESRC and Nuffield Foundation funded projects on these and related issues.