The Open University

Business and Law in the time of COVID-19

The current pandemic has brought both threats and opportunities, overturning economic and social norms but also pointing towards new ways of doing things. In the OU’s Business and Law Schools, our response has been: what can we learn?

This series of reflections on the pandemic highlights how management and legal insights from research and scholarship can help us consider and interpret the current context. How can business and the institutions that support it respond to the challenges, adapt and hopefully look forward to a post-pandemic world?

What's wrong with weddings?

According to Dr Stephanie Pywell, there is quite a lot wrong with the law that governs weddings, some of which existed before Queen Victoria ascended the throne.

9th September 2021

A photo of a woman crouched down and covering her face on the floor

Domestic homicides remain stable during lockdown but still an enduring problem says new report commissioned by police

Domestic homicides remain an ‘entrenched and enduring problem’ despite figures remaining relatively stable during lockdown, a new report drawing on research by an OU academic and commissioned by police has found.

26th August 2021

Innovation adopted during COVID-19 is now “business as usual” according to OU research

The Leading school learning through COVID-19 and beyond project, led by Dr Jacqueline Baxter, together with Dr Katharine Jewitt and University of Reading colleague Professor Alan Floyd, are investigating online learning and strategic planning through, and post, lockdown in English secondary schools.

10th August 2021

Impact of COVID-19 on weddings reinforces need for marriage law reforms, experts say

Coronavirus disruption to weddings has highlighted the complexity and antiquity of marriage law and reinforced the need for reform, a new study shows.

16th June 2021

image of outside building with lots of windows

OUBS academic to present at OU’s Covid-19 research seminar

OU-funded projects which have aimed to improve and support aspects of online learning and education during the pandemic are being showcased on Thursday 27 May.

20th May 2021

The value of small and local charities …. in a big crisis

The Business Schools Centre for Voluntary Sector Leadership (CVSL) is part of a research team, funded by the Lloyds Bank Foundation for England and Wales, which has launched The Value of Small in a Big Crisis report.

5th March 2021

OUBS expert speaks to House of Lords Covid-19 Committee’s inquiry

Dr Jamie Woodcock made several recommendations when he was invited to give oral evidence at the House of Lords Covid-19 Committee inquiry.

2nd March 2021

Researching the impact of Covid-19 on the future workplace

Dr Hilary Collins, a Senior Lecturer in Corporate Programmes for Executive Education, has received £7,500 to assess the impact of the pandemic on Continuing Professional Development (CPD) requirements for organisational development in the UK.

10th February 2021

Image of a woman working at a laptop looking up thoughtfully

“We do good things, don’t we?”: considerations about social enterprises’ evaluation approaches

This blog is written by Dr Francesca Calo, Lecturer in Management at The Open University Business School (OUBS). This blog was originally published on 2 February 2021 and was written for the OUBS Department of Public Leadership and Social Enterprise (PuLSE) blog.

10th February 2021

What happened to law clinics in lockdown?

The disruption caused by Covid-19 has had far reaching impacts and required all of us to adapt to life’s challenges under lockdown. University law clinics are no exception and law academics and clinic supervisors have had to act fast and think creatively to keep their clinical programmes running.

22nd December 2020

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PhD Studentships

The Open University Business and Law Schools also invite applications for a number of full-time funded PhD studentships beginning 1 February 2021 on ‘Responding to COVID-19 and the Climate Emergency’.