Fiona Donson

Fiona Donson is a Lecturer in Law at the School of Law, University College Cork (UCC), Ireland. She holds a PhD from King's College London, an LLM from Queen's University Canada, and an LLB from Leicester University. Her research focuses on socio-legal issues including children's rights, parental imprisonment, administrative justice, and Traveller equality. She co-directs the Traveller Equality and Justice Project (TEJP), funded by the EU and Council of Europe, addressing discrimination and access to justice for Travellers. She also collaborates on projects related to the impact of imprisonment on families and administrative justice reforms.

• Education:
  • PhD in Law, King's College London (1997)
  • LLM, Queen's University, Canada (1989)
  • LLB, Leicester University, UK (1988)

Her research interests emphasize marginalized communities, participatory methods, and interdisciplinary approaches. Key projects include the TEJP, work on children of incarcerated parents with Dr. Aisling Parkes, and studies on administrative justice frameworks in Ireland. She has authored books like Law and Public Administration in Ireland (2015) and Legal Intimidation: A SLAPP in the Face of Democracy (2000).

Teaching includes modules on Administrative Law, Penology, Traveller Rights, and Courtroom Ethnography. She supervises PhD candidates in socio-legal research. Previously, she worked in Cambodia on child rights advocacy and taught at UK institutions like Cardiff and Leicester Universities.

Her grants include funding from the Irish Research Council, EU, and Council of Europe. Collaborations span international networks like Children of Prisoners Europe and interdisciplinary teams addressing family impacts of imprisonment.

She co-chairs the Action for Children and Families of Prisoners with the Irish Penal Reform Trust and contributes to clinical legal education initiatives like Trauma Informed Clinical Legal Education (TiCLE) with UCL and Glasgow University.