Claudio Michelon

Claudio Michelon is Professor of Philosophy of Law at the University of Edinburgh's School of Law, where he serves as Director of the Edinburgh Centre for Legal Theory and Head of Subject Area for Legal Theory. He holds a Personal Chair in Philosophy of Law and is affiliated with both the Edinburgh Centre for Legal Theory and the Edinburgh Centre for Private Law.

• LLB from Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul (1992)
• M.Phil from Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul (1996)
• PhD from University of Edinburgh (2001)

Professor Michelon's research focuses on two main interconnected areas: legal reasoning and decision-making, and the normative structure of private law. His work on legal reasoning explores the role of subjectivity and practical perception in judicial decision-making, the structure of different legal arguments, and draws on diverse philosophical resources including virtue theory, virtue epistemology, and argumentation theory. His private law theory research investigates the relationship between private law and justice (both corrective and distributive), the role of private law in structuring the private sphere, and whether aspects of private law can possess intrinsic value.

His recent scholarly output shows a consistent focus on doctrinal authority, legal reasoning structures, and the philosophical foundations of private law. Michelon frequently examines how coherence operates in legal argumentation, the nature of precedent in legal systems, and the public dimensions of what is traditionally considered private law. His work bridges theoretical legal philosophy with practical concerns of legal decision-making.

• British Academy Visiting Fellowship (2006-2007)
• HLA Hart Visiting Fellowship at Oxford (2007)
• IVR Young Scholar Prize (2001)

Professor Michelon has served as Secretary General of the International Association for Philosophy of Law and Social Philosophy (IVR) from 2007 to 2011. He is actively involved in academic leadership as co-editor of Routledge's Critical Studies in Jurisprudence series and serves on the editorial boards of Springer's Law and Philosophy Library and several academic journals. His research has been supported by projects including the Law in Theory and History Project and The Law and Polity project.

As Director of the Edinburgh Centre for Legal Theory, Professor Michelon leads one of the most prominent research groups in legal philosophy, fostering interdisciplinary dialogue between law, philosophy, and political theory. The Centre organizes regular seminars and workshops that bring together scholars from around the world to explore foundational questions in legal theory.