Gil-Ad Schwartz

BA Law (Magdalen College, University of Oxford); MSt Legal Research (Worcester College, University of Oxford).

I am in the final stages of writing my DPhil thesis — The Case Against Universal Jurisdiction — which argues that the universality principle is not a legitimate jurisdictional basis for the prosecution of violations of a State's domestic criminal law. I work under the supervision of Professor Timothy Endicott (All Souls) and Dr Miles Jackson (Jesus). Prior to his tragic passing, Professor John Gardner took it upon himself to act (informally) in the capacity of a personal mentor to me, for which I am eternally grateful.

My primary area of interest is Jurisprudence, broadly defined. The book I am preparing to write after submitting my thesis is entitled The Moral Legitimacy of Law. It addresses the following question: why is it uniquely morally legitimate for law to impose obligations upon community members (at large) and coercively punish violations of those obligations, when it is not morally legitimate for other social institutions to do so? 

I self-identify as a Natural Lawyer as well as a Legal Formalist. I worship the desiderata of legality as though they had been etched onto stone tablets and handed to Lon Fuller in person at the peak of Mount Moriah.

While I do not currently hold any teaching positions, I have in the past taught Jurisprudence to FHS students at Brasenose College and Wadham College. I have also taught Jurisprudence to visiting students at Worcester College and St Catherine's College.

I took up my first teaching appointment (a one-year post teaching Jurisprudence to visiting students at Worcester College) in the Michaelmas term immediately following my BA graduation. My 'audition' for the job consisted of a class given to Worcester second-year undergraduates while studying for my own final exams. The following term, I starting teaching Jurisprudence to visiting students at St Catherine's College (three non-consecutive terms, and, just as with Worcester, the course consisted of a syllabus substantially identical to the syllabus taught to FHS Law students.) At the time of both of these appointments, I had not yet started my MSt and, therefore, had not had an opportunity to take the PLTO. My first few terms of teaching were limited to visiting students and PPE FHS students who chose Jurisprudence as an option paper, but it was sufficient to give me the bug.

As an undergraduate, I won the Maitland Chambers Inter-Collegiate Mooting Competition (acting as Senior Counsel). Sir Stephen Sedley judged the Grand Final. As an MSt and first-year DPhil student, I coached Worcester undergraduates to respectable mooting successes — both in competitions internal to the University and in competitions open to teams from Universities internationally.

If you're interested in any of my research, feel free to get in touch! 

If you require teaching in Criminal Law (mods), Constitutional Law (mods), Administrative Law, or Jurisprudence, likewise, I would love to hear from you. Please note I am not available to teach Jurisprudence in TT26 because I must focus my efforts on preparing my DPhil thesis for submission.