About the Centre for Health Law, Science and Policy

The Centre for Health Law, Science and Policy is an interdisciplinary Centre established in summer 2011 at the Law School at the University of Birmingham.

Photo of digital image of cells

Health Law is a growing discipline looking at a wide spectrum of issues from the health care professional-patient relationship, the "public" dimension of health, and regulatory aspects of health care delivery. The nature of health care delivery is the subject of rapid evolution and new structural and scientific developments from the " new genetics" to "nanomedicine" give rise to new legal and regulatory challenges both in domestic law and at EU level.

CHLSP aims to foster dialogue and world leading research in this area and also to foster research led teaching through the development of postgraduate courses and doctoral students.

The Centre is based in the Law School and includes leading scholars from within the Law School and also members from across the University of Birmingham working in a range of disciplines. In addition draws upon a broader advisory board including those in the NHS and legal profession working in this area and input from the broader international community.

Health Law at Birmingham Law School is an active interdisciplinary research area and the School has a wide range of health law related modules on both the School’s LLB and LLM programmes. As a Centre we also strive to create as many spaces as possible for the exchange of ideas and academic debate. The Centre runs a seminar series, a ‘brown bag lunch’ programme, and a PhD Reading Group that provides an opportunity for our growing and engaged postgraduate community to present work in an informal setting.

Our group members present at national and international conferences and publish on both domestic and global platforms. The the depth of impact our research has beyond the Law School is evidenced by the fact that members of the Centre advise and assist a vast range of policy-makers including the Department of Health, UK Biobank, the British Medical Association, the Royal College of General Practitioners, and the Home Office.