Jennifer Ang

I teach W211 (Public Law) and W260 (International, environmental and space law) at present.  I have been an Associate Lecturer in Law at the Open University since 2007, and during that time I have taught on a range of law modules, including introductory courses in the law of England & Wales, and Scots law.

I am an experienced human rights lawyer, qualified to practice in Scotland, England & Wales, and New York State.  In 2017, I founded JustRight Scotland, a charity that uses the law to defend and extend people’s rights in Scotland, where I remain responsible for our development and strategy.  I am a legal expert on asylum, children’s rights, and the rights of survivors of torture, and am regularly asked to speak, and contribute to research, policy and publications in these areas.  Recently, I have become interested in exploring how we can build legal frameworks to safeguard human rights in the development of artificial intelligence (AI) and in our exploration of space.

I believe that lawyers have an obligation to create positive change in the world, not only through legal practice, but also by lending their time and energy to public legal education and training the next generation of legal professionals.  I also believe that the enthusiasm and idealism that law students bring to their studies provides a useful counterbalance to the weariness and cynicism that can come from a long career in difficult areas of legal practice. 

Teaching at the OU has been such an important part of my life, and my OU colleagues have been a valued part of my network throughout my varied career.  My students have also taught me so much over the years, and have shaped, inspired and challenged me, in ways that they may not appreciate!  Most of all, I love the values and ethos of the Open University.  I am an enthusiastic advocate of open education and widening access to education for all, and proud to be a part of an academic institution that offers that opportunity to future students, everywhere in the world, every day.