About
Dr. Maria Orchard is a Research Fellow and Teaching Fellow at the University of Leeds' School of Law. She joined in 2019 as a Postdoctoral Research Fellow on the ERC-funded 'Inclusive Public Space' project led by Professor Anna Lawson and became a Teaching Fellow in 2023. Her work focuses on disability law, human rights, and access to justice, with a particular emphasis on inclusive urban design and socio-legal methodologies.
Education:
- PhD in Law
- LLM in International Human Rights Law and Labour Rights
- JD in International and Comparative Law
- BA in Political Science and Foreign Languages
Research interests include disability law and policy, feminist disability studies, accessibility in public spaces, and international human rights law. She critically examines how laws and policies impact marginalized groups, particularly disabled individuals, in accessing justice and equitable urban environments.
Her research outputs analyze legal frameworks for accessibility, pandemic-era challenges for disabled communities, and the intersection of gender and disability in domestic violence contexts. She is affiliated with the Centre for Disability Studies, Centre for Law and Social Justice, and the Disability Law Hub, contributing to interdisciplinary collaborations.
