Octavio Ferraz

Octavio Ferraz is a Professor of Law and Co-Director of the Transnational Law Institute at King's College London's Dickson Poon School of Law. His academic journey includes an LLB and MPhil from the University of São Paulo, an MA in Medical Ethics & Law (with the Benjamin Geijsen Prize) from King's College London, and a PhD from University College London. He transitioned to academia after practicing corporate and medical law in São Paulo for over a decade and later served as a senior research officer to the UN Special Rapporteur on the right to health at the University of Essex.

Education:

• LLB and MPhil in Law, University of São Paulo
• MA in Medical Ethics & Law (Benjamin Geijsen Prize), King's College London
• PhD in Law, University College London

Research Interests: Focus on human rights, law's role in poverty and inequality reduction, and transnational perspectives. Interdisciplinary approaches engage political philosophy, economics, and sociology. Key themes include judicialization of health in Brazil, social rights enforcement, and the intersection of law and development.

Publications: Recent works address Brazil's social policies, pandemic legal responses (e.g., vaccine mandates), and the role of courts in enforcing social rights. His 2020 book Health as a Human Right: The Politics and Judicialisation of Health in Brazil explores judicialization's impact on health equity.

Awards: Recipient of the Benjamin Geijsen Prize for his MA in Medical Ethics & Law.

Professional Involvement: Leads King's Brazil Institute and co-directs the Transnational Law Institute. Collaborates with global projects on authoritarianism, human rights, and environmental law (e.g., Amazon protection initiatives). Active in policy discussions, including UN submissions on Brazil's human rights compliance.

Teaching: Courses include Public Law, International Human Rights Law, and transnational perspectives on inequality and the rule of law.