Paula O'Brien

Professor Paula O'Brien is a leading academic at the University of Melbourne's Melbourne Law School, specializing in public health law. She serves as Director of the Health Law and Ethics Network and the Health and Medical Law Masters program. Her research focuses on regulating corporate conduct affecting health, international economic law, and healthcare systems, with a particular emphasis on alcohol policy. She holds a PhD from the University of Melbourne and an LLM (Class I) from the University of Cambridge.

Education includes a BA/LLB (Hons) from Melbourne Law School (1998) and an LLM from Cambridge (2008). She previously practiced administrative law and led the Public Interest Law Clearing House (PILCH), earning the Women Lawyers' Rising Star Award in 2007 for her advocacy.

Her research employs interdisciplinary methods, addressing alcohol regulation under trade law, healthcare access for marginalized groups, and global health governance. Collaborations span law, public health, and medicine. Key contributions include critiques of industry self-regulation and advocacy for stricter alcohol labeling policies.

• Research Centers: Health Law and Ethics Network, Institute for International Law and the Humanities, Melbourne Centre for Commercial Law

Her work influences policy reform, particularly in alcohol control and healthcare justice, and is widely cited across disciplines.