Alumni & Friends Discussions

The Alumni & Friends Discussions are annual flagship events in held in Edinburgh and other locations to bring together alumni, friends of Edinburgh Law School, and others around a presentation on current issues.
The discussions are led by members of our faculty, who produce world-leading impactful research that makes a difference both locally and globally.
Do the fundamentals of EU law still matter?
In conversation with each other, Professors Jo Shaw, Salvesen Chair of European Institutions and Head of Edinburgh Law School, and Niamh Nic Shuibhne, reflected on whether studying, teaching, and researching what they call the “fundamentals" of EU law still matters. The event was chaired by alumnus Colin Brown (LLB, 1996).
The event took place on Wednesday, 29 May 2024 at Scotland House Brussels. Read more about the discussion here.
Constitutional Unsettlement
It has been argued that the United Kingdom is in a state of constitutional unsettlement, where questions around EU participation, devolution, independence and human rights protection, among others, are subject to continuous debate with uncertain long-term consequences.
As part of this discussion, Professor Stephen Tierney reflected upon his work as Legal Adviser to the House of Lords Constitution Committee over the past seven years, during which he has advised upon numerous pieces of Brexit-related legislation and their impact upon devolution. Dr Elisenda Casanas Adam discussed her work on human rights reform and provided a view from Scotland.
The discussion in Edinburgh was held on 3 May 2023 at Edinburgh Law School and chaired by Professor Jo Shaw, Salvesen Chair of European Institutions and Head of Edinburgh Law School. The discussion in London was held on 10 May 2023 in the House of Commons and chaired by Edinburgh Law School alumna the Rt Hon Dame Eleanor Laing, DBE MP (LLB, 1982).
What are digital assets as things in the law of property?
There is an emerging consensus that many kinds of digital assets, such as cryptocurrencies, are things which can be owned. They may be the subject of property and have familiar principles of property law applied to them. However, difficult questions - such as how to describe the thing which we say is the subject of property - remain.
As part of the discussions in Edinburgh and London, Professor David Fox, Professor of Common Law, explored the question: ‘What are digital assets as things in the law of property?’. Both discussions were chaired by Professor Alexandra Braun, Lord President Reid Chair of Law at the University of Edinburgh.
In London, Professor Fox was joined by Edinburgh Law School alumnus Lord Hodge, Deputy President of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom, and Matt Feehily, Senior Managing Associate at Sidley Austin. In Edinburgh, Professor Fox was joined by Lord Hodge and Callum Sinclair, Partner and Head of Technology and Commercial at Burness Paull.
Read more about Digital Assets as Transactional Power.