Dr Brian Christopher Jones

Personal Statement

I joined Liverpool in July 2023 after holding lecturer positions at the University of Sheffield, the University of Dundee, and Liverpool Hope University. Before this, I was a postdoctoral fellow in the Law Department at Academia Sinica in Taipei, Taiwan. Currently I am also an Executive Committee Member for the Society of Legal Scholars (SLS).

My research primarily focuses on public law, touching on aspects of comparative constitutional law, constitutional theory, and law & politics. I've published in high quality journals from around the world, such as: International Journal of Constitutional Law, Public Law, Stanford Law & Policy Review, Legal Studies, Parliamentary Affairs, Statute Law Review, King's Law Journal, Wisconsin Law Review, and Hong Kong Law Journal, amongst others.

My 2020 monograph, Constitutional Idolatry and Democracy: Challenging the Infatuation with Writtenness (Edward Elgar, 2020), received many positive reviews. Professor David Feldman (University of Cambridge) classified it as ‘a thought-provoking book', noting that, 'every public lawyer and student of public law would benefit from reading it to test their assumptions'. And Professor Sandy Levinson (University of Texas) said, 'I can’t imagine a better book to discuss in a seminar, whether of students or senior academics'. I've also edited two book collections: Law and Politics of the Taiwan Sunflower and Hong Kong Umbrella Movements (Routledge, 2017) and Democracy and Rule of Law in China's Shadow (Hart, 2021).

My work has been cited by former President of the UK Supreme Court, Brenda Hale, in addition to media outlets such as: the New York Times, the Economist and the Wall St. Journal. I've also appeared on BBC Breakfast and BBC Radio to discuss various aspects of my research.