School of Law

The Centre of European Law and Legal Studies (CELLS) builds on a longer tradition of European Law researchers at the University of Leeds. We have had a specialist centre since 1993.

Here at CELLS, we are committed to high quality research, not only in doctrinal aspects of European law, but also in the wider field of European Legal Studies, which extends to research themes involving interdisciplinary content.

Focusing on the European Union

Our point of departure is the model character of the European Union. This polity and its law are the focus of global attention for providing new ways of organising trans-national law and delivering international governance rather than traditional international law.

The EU model for economic and social constitutionalism is of particular importance to us. Resting as much on the laws and traditions of its Member States as on substantive EU law, it requires European legal research to be comparative.

Three key areas

We organise our research into three focal points: "European and International Equality Law", "Governance and Legitimacy at European Level" and "Economic and Social Constitutionalism as Europe's Societal Base". These contribute towards establishing a specific Leeds approach to European law and legal studies.

CELLS consists of eleven full time academic staff plus PhD researchers and other researchers working on specific projects. The Centre is a Partner in the University of Leeds' Jean Monnet European Centre of Excellence, thus offering links to political sciences, economics and media studies.