Professor Norma Dawson awarded honorary degree by Edinburgh Law School
Mon 10 July 2023
Norma Dawson, Professor of Law Emeritus at the Queen’s University, Belfast, was awarded the honorary degree of LLD by the University of Edinburgh during the Law School graduation ceremony on the morning of 10 July 2023.
A distinguished and energetic scholar, she is best known for her work on property law, trademarks, and legal history. She taught one of the earliest courses on intellectual property in a UK university. She has recently published a book on the modern legal history of treasure.
She has a notable record of service both within and outwith academia. She is past president of the Irish Legal History Society (which awarded her its gold medal in 2022), and has served on the judicial commission of Northern Ireland, as an honorary Bencher of the Inn of Court of Northern Ireland, and as a trustee of the Hamlyn Trust. She has served on the Broadcasting Council of Northern Ireland, the Judicial Committee of the Presbyterian Church of Ireland, and as a Governor of Victoria College. This is just a sample. In 2017, she was awarded the CBE for services to legal education and the legal profession. She has been an honorary professor in Edinburgh since 2018. A former colleague described her as “welcoming … helpful… and wise”.
Celebratory Event
On 11 July the School has organised a conference in her honour, where some research students will present their work, and she give her thoughts on one significant aspect of treasure.