The UKAJI team

A core team of two part-time members has day-to-day responsibility for UKAJI’s activities. We work with researchers, practitioners and policy-makers at universities, in government, the voluntary sector and other institutions across the UK and internationally.

UKAJI’s core team based at the University of Essex School of Law consists of:

• Lee Marsons (Commissioning Editor), GTA and PhD candidate, University of Essex – managing UKAJI’s website, Twitter account, and blog, and working with the core team across the UKAJI project. Lee is the first point of contact for UKAJI business and can be contacted at lm17598@essex.ac.uk.
• Maurice Sunkin (Principal Investigator), Professor of Public Law and Socio-Legal Studies, University of Essex – principal investigator, leading and coordinating the whole project.

During our Phase 1 work, 2014-17, the following individuals were involved with UKAJI:

Core team

• Jane Parsons, Administrative Assistant, University of Essex, working with the core team across the UKAJI project (May-Dec 2017)
• Sally Barrs, Administrative Assistant, University of Essex, working with the core team across the UKAJI project (May 2016-April 2017)
• Varda Bondy, Senior Research Fellow, University of Essex, formerly Director of Research, Public Law Project – working on establishing and developing links with stakeholders communities, reviewing research, and mapping researchers.
• Margaret Doyle, Senior Research Fellow, University of Essex,  managing website and blog and working with the core team across the UKAJI project.
• Andrew Le Sueur, Executive Dean, Humanities, and Professor of Constitutional Justice, University of Essex (co-investigator until September 2016) – leading on establishing, developing and sustaining UKAJI; with Bondy and Burningham, working on establishing and developing links with stakeholders communities, reviewing research, and mapping researchers
• Maurice Sunkin (principal investigator), Professor of Public Law and Socio Legal Studies, University of Essex – principal investigator, leading and coordinating the whole project; also working with Platt and Sena on capacity issues.

Specific projects

• Kakia Chatsiou, Research Officer, Catalyst Project, Department of Government, University of Essex – researching administrative data sources
• Joanna Dawson, Senior Researcher, House of Commons Library – producing UKAJI’s ‘What’s New in administrative justice’ monthly updates.

Wider core team

• Ray Burningham, formerly Chief Executive, Administrative Justice and Tribunals Council, currently adviser to Welsh Government on Administrative Justice – with Bondy, working on establishing and developing links with stakeholders communities, reviewing research, and mapping researchers
• Christian Gill, Lecturer in Administrative Justice, Queen Margaret University – with Mullen, working on our activities in Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales; undertaking a pilot project with Mullen
• Andrew Le Sueur, Executive Dean, Humanities, and Professor of Constitutional Justice, University of Essex (co-investigator until September 2016) – leading on establishing, developing and sustaining UKAJI; with Bondy and Burningham, working on establishing and developing links with stakeholders communities, reviewing research, and mapping researchers
• Grainne McKeever, Reader in Law and Director, Ulster University Law Clinic – working on social security and welfare reform, and with Gill and Mullen on our activities in Northern Ireland
• Tom Mullen, Professor of Law, University of Glasgow – with Gill, working on our activities in Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales; undertaking a pilot project with Gill
• Lucinda Platt, Professor of Social Policy, LSE – with Hood and Pudney, working on cross-disciplinary issues; with Sena, working on issues relating to big data
• Steve Pudney, Professor of Econometrics, Health Economics and Decision Science, School of Health and Related Research, University of Sheffield and co-Director of the ESRC Research Centre on Micro-Social Change and a member of the scientific leadership team of the Understanding Society household panel survey, both based at ISER, University of Essex– with Hood and Platt, working on cross-disciplinary issues; also leading a sub-team working on aspects of administrative justice from an economics perspective 
• Vania Sena, Professor of Business Economics and Entrepreneurship, Director of the ESRC Business and Local Government Data Research Centre, University of Essex – with Platt, working on issues relating to big data 
• Robert Thomas, Professor of Public Law, University of Manchester – working on tribunals, immigration and asylum, and administrative decision making
• Joe Tomlinson, Lecturer in Public Law, University of Sheffield – working on tribunals, administrative decision-making, and digitalisation

Expert group

The core team works with a wider network of experts possessing considerable and diverse expertise in relation to administrative justice and complementary disciplines, and strong links with relevant stakeholder communities, including consumer groups, the charity sector and business. The network currently consists of:

• Gordon Anthony (Professor of Public Law, Queen’s University, Belfast)
• Trevor Buck (Professor of Socio-legal Studies, De Montfort University)
• Gavin Drewry (Emeritus Professor of Public Administration, Royal Holloway, London)
• Tim Hatton (Professor of Economics, Essex)
• Simon Halliday (Professor of Socio-legal Studies, York)
• John Hills (Professor of Social Policy, LSE, Director of the Centre for Analysis of Social Exclusion (CASE)
• Penny Letts OBE (formerly member of the AJTC)
• Dr Yseult Marique (Lecturer in Law, University of Essex, administrative justice issues in France and Belgium)
• Judge Alison McKenna (Principal judge, First-tier tribunal (Charity))
• Morag McDermont (Professor of Socio-Legal Studies, Bristol)
• Linda Mulcahy (Professor of Law, LSE)
• Sarah Nason (Lecturer in Law, Bangor)
• Ellie Palmer (Emeritus Professor of Law, member of Human Rights Centre, Essex)
• Dr Tim Rakow (Senior Lecturer in Psychology, King’s College London)
• Roy Sainsbury (Professor, Social Policy Research Unit, York)
• Richard Thomas CBE (formerly Chair of AJTC and Information Commissioner)

Advisory Board

Our work is overseen by an Advisory Board.

• Lucy Scott-Moncrieff (chair), Director, Scott-Moncrieff & Associates LLP; Commissioner, Judicial Appointments Commission
• Jodi Berg, Chair, Administrative Justice Forum
• Bob Chapman, Chair, National Advice Network Wales; Member of the Low Commission
• Dr Jane Martin, Local Government Ombudsman; Vice Chair, Ombudsman Association
• Sarah O’Neill, legal and consumer policy expert, former member of the Scottish Tribunals and Administrative Justice Advisory Committee
• Professor Genevra Richardson, School of Law, King’s College, London
• Sir Ernest Ryder, Senior President of Tribunals
• Kevin Sadler, Interim Chief Executive, HM Courts & Tribunals Service
• John Sheridan, Digital Director, The National Archives
• Professor Maurice Sunkin, project leader (in attendance)
• Teresa Williams, Director of Social Research & Policy, Nuffield Foundation