Susana Santos

Susana Santos serves as a Visiting Professor at NOVA School of Law, NOVA University Lisbon, and concurrently at the School of Sociology and Public Policy at ISCTE – Lisbon University Institute. As an integrated researcher at the Center for Research and Studies in Sociology (CIES), she actively contributes to international socio-legal discourse through leadership roles in the International Sociological Association.

Her academic credentials include:

• PhD in Sociology (2012) from ISCTE – University Institute of Lisbon
• Master's in Communication, Culture and Information Technologies (2007) from ISCTE
• Degree in Sociology (2002) from ISCTE

Santos' research critically examines the intersection of law, society, and communication, with particular emphasis on gender dynamics in legal professions, insolvency systems, and socio-legal movements. Her work consistently employs empirical methodologies to analyze professional socialization, workplace culture in law firms, and the impact of legal reforms on judicial systems. She investigates how structural inequalities manifest in elite educational trajectories and legal practice, especially through feminist and comparative lenses.

Her publication record reveals a sustained focus on socio-legal evolution since 2012, with increasing attention to gendered workplace dynamics and transnational legal practices. Recent works demonstrate methodological diversity spanning qualitative narrative analysis, comparative institutional studies, and empirical evaluations of legal procedures, all contributing to global conversations on justice accessibility and professional ethics.

Santos coordinates significant research initiatives including a European Commission-funded Humanitarian Action project (2021-2024) implementing summer schools in Mozambique and Cape Verde, and the IN_SOLVENS multidisciplinary analysis of Portuguese insolvency law. She spearheaded the 7th Global Meeting on Sociology of Law (2022), mobilizing over 2,000 international participants to advance comparative socio-legal scholarship.

Professionally, she co-coordinates the Sociology of Law and Justice section of the Portuguese Sociological Association and contributes to International Sociological Association working groups on Comparative Legal Professions and Comparative History and Sociology of Law, driving collaborative research across national contexts.