Emma Jones
School of Law
Senior Lecturer in Law
Director of Student Wellbeing for the School of Law.
Full contact details
School of Law
Bartolomé House
Winter Street
Sheffield
S3 7ND
- Profile
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I joined the Law School in January 2020. I am currently chairing the modules Remedies in Private Law, Digital Lawyering (undergraduate) and Legal Tech and Lawyering in the Digital Age (postgraduate). I also teach on the Law of Obligations. I am also Director of Student Wellbeing for the School of Law.
Prior to joining Sheffield, I worked at The Open University Law School for five years as a Lecturer and Senior Lecturer. During my time there I was the director of my faculty’s scholarship centre and one of the founders of the Open Justice Centre. My last role was as Law School Teaching Director.
Before moving into academia I was a solicitor in private practice, specialising in construction law. I also taught in the further education sector.
My research interests focus on the role of emotions and wellbeing in legal education and the legal profession and I have conducted a range of empirical work on these topics, as well as writing from a theoretical perspective.
- Qualifications
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Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Authority
Accredited Mediator, Clear ADR
PhD, Keele University
PGCE in Post-compulsory Education and Training, Manchester Metropolitan University
MSc in Construction Law and Arbitration, Leeds Metropolitan University
MA in Politics and Contemporary History, University of Salford
Post-Graduate Diploma in Legal Practice, Nottingham Trent University
BA (Joint Honours) in Politics and Contemporary History, University of Nottingham
- Research interests
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My research focuses on the role of emotions and wellbeing in legal education and the legal profession.
In terms of legal education, I have written on multiple intelligences and the importance of emotion, and also conducted empirical research into the wellbeing of online distance learning law students. I am interested in wellbeing in higher education more widely and in 2019 I was a member of the research team for Student Minds’ University Mental Health Charter.
In terms of the legal profession, I have written on the importance of emotional competence and conducted empirical work on wellbeing in legal practice. I lead the Fit for Law project, in partnership with the charity LawCare, which seeks to promote psychologically and emotionally healthier ways of working within law. I was a member of the Research Committee for LawCare’s Life in the Law Report (2021). I am also a member of the International Bar Association’s Presidential Taskforce on Lawyer Wellbeing.
Areas of Research Supervision
- Legal Education
- The Legal Profession
- Law and Emotions
- Law and Wellbeing
- Digital Lawyering and Law Tech
- Publications
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Books
- Mental Health and Wellbeing in the Legal Profession. Bristol University Press.
- Introduction.
- Emotions in the Law School: Transforming Legal Education through the Passions. London, UK: Routledge.
- Key Directions in Legal Education. Routledge.
Journal articles
- Legal education for wellbeing: design, delivery and evaluation. The Law Teacher, 56(1), 1-4.
- The rule of lawyers: Applying therapeutic jurisprudence at the intersections of wellbeing, disciplinary proceedings and professionalism. European Journal of Current Legal Issues, 26(1).
- Blackstone's Tower in Context. Amicus Curiae, Volume 2(Issue 3), 317-336.
- Experiencing English Law Schools: The Student Perspective. Amicus Curiae, Volume 2(Issue 3), 393-409.
- Key challenges and opportunities around wellbeing for distance learning students : the online law school experience. Open Learning The Journal of Open Distance and e-Learning.
- Co-creating a wellbeing toolkit in a distance learning environment: A case study.. The Journal of Educational Innovation, Partnership and Change, 6(1).
- The world at their fingertips? The mental wellbeing of online distance-based law students. The Law Teacher, 53(1), 49-69.
- Dissolving the stiff upper lip: Opportunities and challenges for the mainstreaming of therapeutic jurisprudence in the United Kingdom. International Journal of Law and Psychiatry, 63, 76-84.
- Affective or defective? Exploring the LETR’s characterisation of affect and its translation into practice. The Law Teacher, 52(4), 478-489.
- Transforming legal education through emotions. Legal Studies, 38(3), 450-479.
- Empathy: an essential element of legal practice or ‘never the twain shall meet’?. International Journal of the Legal Profession, 25(1), 107-124.
- One size fits all? Multiple intelligences and legal education. The Law Teacher, 51(1), 56-68.
- An emotionally vulnerable profession? Profession values and emotions within legal practice. Legal Ethics.
- Incorporating an affective framework into liberal legal education to achieve the development of a ‘better person’ and ‘good citizen’. European Journal of Legal Education.
- Book Review: Interactional Justice: The Role of Emotions in the Performance of Loyalty by Lisa Flower. Acta Sociologica, 000169932110653-000169932110653.
- Student wellbeing and assessment in higher education: the balancing act. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, 1-13.
- The role and impact of emotions within everyday legal practice. No Foundations : An Interdisciplinary Journal of Law and Justice.
- Student mental health and transitions into, through and out of university: Student and staff perspectives. Journal of Further and Higher Education.
- Fostering Empathy in Clinical Teaching and Learning Environments: A Unified Approach. Australian Journal of Clinical Education.
- “Look after the staff and they would look after the students” Cultures of wellbeing and mental health in the university setting. Journal of Further and Higher Education.
Chapters
- Integrating wellbeing into the law school curriculum, How to Offer Effective Wellbeing Support to Law Students (pp. 140-156). Edward Elgar Publishing
- A change in outfit? Conceptualising Legal Skills in the Contemporary Law School In Roper V & Rachel D (Ed.), ELE Routledge
- Mental Health and Wellbeing in the Legal Profession. Bristol University Press.
- Grants
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Title/Description:
The creation of digital resources on becoming a barrister
Awarding Body:
The Honourable Society of the Inner Temple
People Involved:
Emma Jones, Neil Graffin
Dates:
2020
Amount (£):
Title/Description:
Developing resources to enhance the wellbeing of legal professionals (Fit for Law)Awarding Body:
LawCare Limited
People Involved:
Emma Jones, Neil Graffin, Mathijs Lucassen, Rajvinder Samra
Dates:
2018-2021
Amount (£):
Title/Description:
Admission tutors’ perceptions of the role and purpose of the LLB
Awarding Body:
Legal Education Research Network
People Involved:
Emma Jones
Dates:
2016
Amount (£):
- Teaching interests
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I believe that teaching and learning are not only cognitive experiences, but also involve emotions and feelings. It is therefore important that legal education is underpinned by a focus on inclusivity and wellbeing to create a safe and positive environment for students and educators to explore new, and often challenging, concepts.
I also believe that learning should be as interactive and enjoyable as possible and seek to integrate a wide range of techniques and experiences into my teaching.
- Teaching activities
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Undergraduate
- Perspectives on the Legal Profession
- Remedies in Public Law
- Digital Lawyering
Postgraduate
- Legal Tech and Lawyering in the Digital Age
- Professional activities and memberships
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Professional activities and recognition
- Deputy Editor, The Law Teacher Journal
- Vice-Chair and Executive Committee Member, Association of Law Teachers
- Trustee, Socio-Legal Studies Association
- Co-Convenor, Law and Emotion Stream,Socio-Legal Studies Association Annual Conference
- Co-Chair, UK Chapter, International Society for Therapeutic Jurisprudence
- Co-founder, UK Law and Emotion Network
- Secretary, Legal Education Research Network
- Membership Secretary and Executive Committee Member, Association of Law Teachers
- Member, Legal Education Committee, Society of Legal Scholars
- Associate Academic Fellow of the Honourable Society of the Inner Temple (formerly Academic Fellow from 2016-2019)
- Editor of the Journal of Commonwealth Law and Legal Education (2015-2019)
Recent Invited Papers and Keynote Lectures
- Invited speaker and panellist, Life in the Law launch, September 2021.
- Keynote, Legal Education Section, Society of Legal Scholars Annual Conference, University of Exeter, 2020.
- Invited panellist, International Bar Association Webinar, April 2020.
- Invited panellist, LegalEdCon North, 2020.
- Invited speaker, ‘Responses to Error’, University of Portsmouth, 2019.
- Invited speaker, Legal Education Research Network, 2019.
- Invited speaker, Legal Education Roundtable, CILEx Regulation, 2019.