Professor Jim Murdoch joined the School of Law in 1979 after qualifying as a solicitor. He read Law as an undergraduate at Glasgow and has an LLM from the University of California at Berkeley. He was Head of the School of Law between 1996 and 2000. He has taught at the Universities of Mainz and Hamburg and was a professeur stagiaire with the Directorate of Human Rights of the Council of Europe in France. His research interest are in domestic and European human rights law. He is a regular participant in Council of Europe seminar programme visits to Central and East European states and has developed a particular interest in non-judicial human rights enforcement mechanisms.

Jim’s research interests lie in the following areas: British public law (in particular, Scottish constitutional law, and ‘incorporation’ of human rights guarantees into domestic law). European human rights protection (in particular, European human rights machinery, including the European Convention on Human Rights, European Committee for the Prevention of Torture, and non-judicial mechanisms for human rights protection). He also has an interest in religion and the law.

Professor Jim Murdoch, Professor of Public Law at the University of Glasgow has been awarded the Pro Merito medal of the Council of Europe.  The medal is the highest distinction granted by the Secretary General to individuals or organisations in recognition of their commitment to the Council of Europe’s values and work.

The medal was presented to Jim for his work in human rights education and in particular, the Human Rights Project, now in its 20th year.