Lydia Bracken

Dr.

Accepting PhD Students

20132025

Research activity per year

Personal profile

Biography

Dr Lydia Bracken is an Associate Professor (Senior Lecturer) in Law at the University of Limerick (UL). She is a graduate of UCC (BCL; LLM; PhD) and the Honorable Society of King's Inns (Barrister-at-Law degree). Lydia has also completed a Masters in Teaching, Learning and Scholarship (UL). Lydia researches in the areas of child and family law, with a particular focus on the legal recognition of 'non-traditional' and 'new' families.

Lydia is the author of two books, Same-Sex Parenting and the Best Interests Principle (Cambridge University Press, 2020) and Child Law in Ireland (Clarus Press, 2018), and has published her research in a range of high-ranking national and international journals. Lydia's research has been influential in guiding discourse on law reform in Ireland and abroad: for example, Lydia has presented her research to the Special Joint Oireachtas Committee on International Surrogacy; the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth on the rights of the child in domestic and international surrogacy; the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health during pre-legislative scrutiny of the Assisted Human Reproduction Bill 2017; as well as the European Commission Against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) Task Force on LGBTI Rights; and her research has been cited by the Law Commission for England and Wales and the Law Commission for Scotland, among others. In April 2023, Lydia was selected as an inaugural member of the Young Academy of Ireland.

Lydia was the inaugural Assistant Dean for Equality, Diversity and Inclusion in UL's Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences (AHSS) from 2019 to 2024. During this time, she chaired the AHSS Athena SWAN Self-Assessment Team and led the faculty's successful Bronze Athena SWAN award application in 2020. She established and chaired the AHSS Widening Student Participation working group and sat on a number of University-level committees including the University of Limerick Athena SWAN Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Steering Committee and the Human Rights, Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Steering Committee.

Lydia is the inaugural course director of both the Graduate Certificate/Diploma in Equality, Diversity and Inclusion and the Bachelor of Arts in Applied Policing and Criminal Justice. She was Director of Clinical Legal Education at the School of Law, UL from 2016 -2019.

Research Interests

My research interests are in the areas of child and family law and European human rights. In particular, I am interested in examining the legal recognition of non-traditional and 'new' families and exploring how such recognition can be provided in a manner that respects the rights and interests of children. Topics within my research include issues pertaining to parentage, parental responsibilities and guardianship, adoption, and the legal regulation of assisted human reproduction including surrogacy.

I am interested in supervising doctoral research that pertains to any of my core research areas listed above. Interested students should first compile an outline research proposal before contacting me on [email protected] to discuss further.

Expertise related to UN Sustainable Development Goals

In 2015, UN member states agreed to 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all. This person’s work contributes towards the following SDG(s):

  • SDG 4 - Quality Education
  • SDG 5 - Gender Equality
  • SDG 10 - Reduced Inequalities
  • SDG 16 - Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions

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