Public Lectures from the Faculty of Law, University of Cambridge

Speaker: Dr Brian Sloan, College Lecturer & Fellow in Law, Robinson College, CambridgeA joint seminar between Cambridge Reproduction and the Cambridge Socio-Legal Group.In 2015, The Independent newspaper reported the case of a man who had ‘failed’ a paternity test in the United States because the genetic material in his saliva was different from that in his sperm. This was apparently the first reported instance of a paternity test being ‘fooled’ by a ‘human chimera’. Such a chimera has extra genes, in this instance absorbed from a twin lost in early pregnancy. The result was that the true genetic father of the man’s son was the man’s deceased twin, who had never been born. Cases of chimeras potentially present a challenge to legal systems, given their frequent emphasis on genetics in determining parenthood. This seminar will explore the likely practical response of English Law to the situation of a potential chimera, with reference inter alia to the human rights of all family members involved. The seminar will then consider what the phenomenon of the chimera might tell us about our understanding of parenthood and the differences between biological motherhood and fatherhood respectively. It will advocate the recognition of the chimeric person as the ‘true’ legal father but point out that this may require fatherhood to be understood as more of a ‘process’ than is often realised.Brian Sloan is College Lecturer & Fellow in Law, Robinson College, Cambridge and a member of the Cambridge Family Law Centre. His research focuses on issues including care of both adults and children. He is the author/editor of several books, most recently Spaces of Care (Hart, 2020, edited with Loraine Gelsthorpe and Perveez Mody). Several of his many articles concern the law of adoption and parenthood.

In its judgment pronounced on 5 May, the Second Senate of the Federal Constitutional Court granted several constitutional complaints directed against the Public Sector Purchase Programme (PSPP) of the European Central Bank (ECB). The Court found that the Federal Government and the German Bundestag violated the complainants’ rights under Art. 38(1) first sentence in conjunction with Art. 20(1) and (2), and Art. 79(3) of the Basic Law (Grundgesetz – GG) by failing to take steps challenging that the ECB, in its decisions on the adoption and implementation of the PSPP, neither assessed nor substantiated that the measures provided for in these decisions satisfy the principle of proportionality. This seminar considers how the decision fits with the other major European Monetary Union decisions and ongoing questions concerning the role of the European Central Bank; the broader economic implications of the German Federal Constitutional Court’s decision for the ECB’s independence and for the Pandemic Emergency Purchase Programme; as well as constitutional questions such as supremacy of EU law and the role of judicial dialogue in the EU constitutional order. Chair: Professor Catherine Barnard Speakers: Dr Alicia Hinarejos Dr Markus Gehring Professor Michael Waibel This was the first CELS online webinar. For more information see the CELS website at: http://www.cels.law.cam.ac.uk/ This entry provides an audio source.

Professor Jo Shaw, University of Edinburgh and Tampere University gave a lunchtime seminar entitled "The Populist Challenge to Constitutional Citizenship" on Wednesday 4 March 2020 at the Faculty of Law as a guest of CELS (the Centre for European Legal Studies). For more information see the CELS website at http://www.cels.law.cam.ac.uk/

Chris Hale (Chair Emeritus of Travers Smith) gave a lecture entitled 'Private Equity: Its place in corporate finance and how it works' on 28 February 2020 at the Faculty of Law as a guest of 3CL. This lecture by Chris Hale, Chair Emeritus of Travers Smith, will explore the economic and legal aspects of private equity, reflecting on its global reach, its growth from its origins in venture capital, and its importance in the context of M&A. As well as an in-depth analysis of the legal structure, he will consider the reasons for its success, the current trends and tis prospects in the future. Chris Hale is a senior consultant in the Private Equity & Financial Sponsors Group of Travers Smith, which he founded in 1996. Chris was Senior Partner between 2013 and 2019, and Head of Corporate from 2003 to 2013. He is listed as among the world’s leading lawyers in private equity by the Legal List 500 and Chambers Global, and as an eminent practitioner for UK Corporate M&A and private equity by Chambers and Partners. For more information see the Centre for Corporate and Commercial Law website at http://www.3cl.law.cam.ac.uk/

On 28 February 2020 Dr Ewan Smith (University of Oxford) gave a seminar entitled "Is Foreign Policy Special?" hosted by the Centre for Public Law (CPL).For more information see the CPL website at: https://www.cpl.law.cam.ac.uk

Ryan Abbott (University of Surrey) gave a lecture entitled 'The Principle of AI Legal Neutrality' on 25 February 2020 at the Faculty of Law as a guest of 3CL. AI and people do not compete on a level-playing field. From a safety perspective, AI may be the best choice for driving a vehicle, but laws often prohibit driverless vehicles. At the same time, a person may be better at providing customer service, but a business may automate because it saves on taxes. AI may be better at helping companies to innovate, but using AI may keep these companies from obtaining intellectual property rights. In The Reasonable Robot, Ryan Abbott argues that the law should not discriminate between people and AI when they are performing the same tasks, a legal standard that will ultimately improve human wellbeing. For more information see the Centre for Corporate and Commercial Law website at http://www.3cl.law.cam.ac.uk/

Mr David Yale was interviewed by Mrs Lesley Dingle on 26 November 2019, in his home in Porthmadog, Snowdonia.For more information, see the Squire website at http://www.squire.law.cam.ac.uk/eminent_scholars/

Mr David Yale was interviewed by Mrs Lesley Dingle on 26 November 2019, in his home in Porthmadog, Snowdonia.For more information, see the Squire website at http://www.squire.law.cam.ac.uk/eminent_scholars/

The Centre for European Legal Studies (CELS) hosts an annual public lecture in honour of Lord Mackenzie-Stuart, the first British Judge to be President of the Court of Justice. Among the eminent scholars of European legal studies invited to give the lecture are Professor Joseph Weiler, former Judge David Edwards of the European Court of Justice, and Advocate-General Francis Jacobs of the European Court of Justice. The texts of the Mackenzie-Stuart Lectures are published in the Cambridge Yearbook of European Legal Studies.The 2020 Mackenzie-Stuart Lecture was delivered by Professor Paul Craig FBA, Emeritus Professor of English Law, Oxford University, under the title 'Membership of the EU: Formal and Substantive Dimensions' on 5 February 2020.More information about this lecture, including photographs from the event, is available from the Centre for European Legal Studies website at:https://www.cels.law.cam.ac.uk/mackenzie-stuart-lectures

Jon Lukomnik (Sinclair Capital & IRRC Institute) gave a lecture entitled 'Blackrock's Environmental Activism: The Third Stage of Corporate Governance' on 4 February 2020 at the Faculty of Law as a guest of 3CL. For more information see the Centre for Corporate and Commercial Law website at http://www.3cl.law.cam.ac.uk/