Academic Profile

Dr Verónica Ruiz Abou-Nigm is a Lecturer in Law at the School of Law, where she is also the Director of the Law with Languages degree programmes. Verónica is a qualified Uruguayan solicitor. She started her academic career in Uruguay in 1997 as an Assistant Professor of Private International Law (UCUDAL). She moved to the UK in 2002 and obtained an LL.M. in Commercial Law and her Ph.D. at Edinburgh University. She has been a member of the Sheffield Law School staff since 2008. Her main areas of research are the private international law aspects of maritime law, international commercial litigation, international commercial arbitration and conflict of laws. Other research interests include air law, comparative law, the interaction between public and private international law, and alternative dispute resolution. Verónica is a member of the Institute for Commercial Law Studies and Centre for Law in its International Context research clusters.

Dr Verónica Ruiz Abou-Nigm is an editor of Shawcross and Beaumont on Air Law (Butterworths/Lexis Nexis).

Member of Institute for Commercial Law Studies and Sheffield Centre for International and European Law research clusters.

Qualifications

PhD, University of Edinburgh (2008) Thesis Title: ‘The Arrest of Ships in Private International Law’
LLM in Commercial Law (Distinction), University of Edinburgh (2003)
Prof. Adscr. Private International Law, Catholic University of Uruguay (UCUDAL) (2002)
J. D., Catholic University of Uruguay (1996)

Research Interests

• Private International Law
• Maritime Law
• International commercial litigation
• International commercial arbitration and ADR
• Air Law
• Comparative Law

Key Publications

Rome I: Evolution or Status Quo? (An analysis of the UK position as to the balance between flexibility, certainty and predictability achieved in articles 3, 4 and 9 of the Rome I Regulation). In D.P. Fernandez Arroyo and N. Gonzalez Martin (Eds.), Porrua, Mexico, 2010, 553-575

Application of Foreign Law in Uruguay. Revista de Transporte y Seguros, No. 23, FCU, Montevideo, Uruguay, 2010 (forthcoming)

Consumer Protection in International Relations’ United Kingdom national report to the 18th International Congress on Comparative Law (2010).

Ancillary Jurisdiction for Interim Measures of Protection in Support of Cross-Border Litigation, Uniform Law Review, Unidroit, Rome, 2005-4, 759-784

El Derecho Marítimo Internacional y el Derecho Internacional Privado (International Maritime Law and Private International Law), with C. Fresnedo de Aguirre in Anuario de Derecho Marítimo (Yearbook of Maritime Law), Vol. XXII, Barcelona, Bosch, 2005, 190-216

Medidas Cautelares en el Litigio Internacional: Las freezing injunctions y las anti-suit injunctions (Preventive Measures in International Litigation: Freezing injunctions and Anti-suit injunctions), Derecho del Comercio Internacional –Temas y Actualidades (De CITA), No. 4, Zavalia, Buenos Aires, 2005, 295-313

Key Projects/Grants

Max Planck Institute for Foreign Private and Private International Law, Hamburg, Germany. Research Fellowship grant for seven months research at the Institute over three years (2004,2005,2006)

Unidroit, Rome, Research Scholarship grant for two months research at the Unidroit Secretariat, Rome (2006)

College of Humanities and Social Science, University of Edinburgh, Studentship Award for pursuing PhD Studies at the School of Law (2003-2006); ORS (Overseas Research Students) Award (2003-2006)

Chevening Scholarship, British Council (2002-2003)

Organisation of American States (OAS), Scholarship for attending the XXVII Course of International Law, ‘Regionalism Vs. Universalism’ organised by the Inter-American Juridical Comité (CJI) , Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (2000)

The Hague Academy of International Law, Scholarship for attending the Summer Course on Private International Law at the Hague Academy, The Hague, The Netherlands (1999)

Professional Activities and Recognition

• Member of the International Academy of Comparative Law
• Researcher International Max Planck Research School for Maritime Affairs at the University of Hamburg, www.maritimeaffairs.org
• Member of the American Association of Private International Law (ASADIP), Representative of the Association before UNIDROIT
• Member of the Society of Legal Scholars (SLS)
• Member of the Uruguayan Bar Association
• Member of the Uruguayan Maritime Law Association

Teaching

Undergraduate

• Principles of Comparative Law
• Maritime Law (Module Convenor)
• Conflict of Laws (Module Convenor)

Postgraduate

• International Commercial Arbitration (LL.M.) (Module Convenor)
• International Commercial Litigation (LL.M.) (Module Convenor)

Areas of Research Supervision

• Transnational Law and international commercial contracts
• Carriage of Goods by Sea
• Transnational Civil procedure
• Jurisdictional issues in commercial litigation
• International Commercial Arbitration and ADR