Amy Kirby

Amy Kirby is a Lecturer in Criminology at Birkbeck, University of London's School of Social Sciences, specializing in criminal justice system legitimacy, lay participation, and procedural justice. With 15+ years at the Institute for Criminal Policy Research (ICPR), she has led ESRC and Nuffield Foundation-funded projects examining victim, witness, and defendant experiences in Crown Courts.

Her research focuses on court legitimacy frameworks, magistrates' decision-making processes, and stakeholder engagement in criminal justice. Recent publications analyze the 'ideology of triviality' in magistrates' courts (2024), develop witnessing (dis)engagement metrics (2023), and explore socio-legal participation models (2025). Her work consistently bridges academic theory and policy implementation through collaborations with Victim Support, Clinks, and the Criminal Justice Alliance.

Key research trends include longitudinal analysis of court culture impacts (2017-2023), evolving conceptualizations of legal participation (2020-2025), and persistent examination of procedural justice gaps across court tiers. Her publications span high-impact journals like British Journal of Criminology and policy-focused outputs for legal reform organizations.

• Nuffield Foundation-funded 'Lived Experiences of the Law' study (current co-investigator)
• ESRC-funded PhD research on court legitimacy (awarded 2019)
• 20-month ESRC study of Crown Court experiences
• Revolving Doors collaboration on justice system accessibility

As Admissions Tutor for LLM/MA Criminal Law and Criminal Justice programs, she supervises undergraduate dissertations, postgraduate research projects, and PhD candidates while convening modules on Youth Justice, Victims & Society, and Contemporary Criminal Justice Issues. Her policy impact is demonstrated through expert testimony for judicial bodies and frequent media commentary on sentencing trends.