Margaret Fitzgerald O'Reilly

Dr Margaret Fitzgerald-OReillys research research interests are primarily in the field of criminology, penology and criminal justice, in particular, the collateral consequences of a criminal conviction, criminal record sharing and disclosure issues, post-release management of offenders, sentencing and management of sex offenders, social and legal exclusion, techniques of punishment, sentencing, and crime control policies. She has published books and papers, nationally and internationally and is a member of the Centre for Crime Justice and Victim Studies.

Teaching interests and experience in a number of areas, particularly in the field of criminal law and criminal justice.

Dr Margaret Fitzgerald-O Reilly, BCL, LLM, PhD (UCC) is an Associate Professor at the School of Law at UL.

Prior to her appointment in 2012, she lectured in the School of Law and Government at DCU. Margaret has an LLM in Criminal Justice and in 2012 was awarded her PhD entitled The Usual Suspects: The Legal Marginalisation of Ex-Prisoners in Irish Society; she was awarded a University President s Scholarship to undertake this research. Her research interests are primarily in the field of criminology, penology and criminal justice, in particular, issues pertaining to the collateral consequences of a criminal conviction, criminal record disclosure and post-release management of offenders. She is particularly interested in the sentencing and management of sex offenders during and post incarceration and has contributed to the development of Irish legislation in this area. 

Her research also focuses onsocial and legal exclusion, techniques of punishment and crime control policies. She is the author of a research monography Uses and Consequences of a Criminal Conviction: Going on the Record of an Offender (UK: Palgrave Macmillan, 2018) and co-author of Sexual Offending in Ireland: Laws, Procedures and Punishment, (Dublin: Clarus Press, 2018). She is currently working on another research monograph towards an International Criminal Records Database: Implications for Risk, Security and Human Rights (Forthcoming: Palgrave Macmillan). She has also published in national and international peer reviewed journals and is a member of the Centre for Crime Justice and Victim Studies, UL. She supervises PhD candidates researching in the areas of sentencing, prisons and prisoners, and sexual offences. She welcomes applications from candidates interested in these areas and other areas of criminology, offender management and rehabilitation and desistance of offenders.