- Simon Lee was a Brackenbury Scholar at Balliol College, Oxford (1976-1979) and a Harkness Fellow at Yale Law School (1979-1980)
- His contributions to the peace process in Northern Ireland included being the co-founder of Initiative ’92, which established the Opsahl Commission
- Simon currently chairs the William Temple Foundation.
One of the UK’s most experienced and influential law professors, with a long-standing commitment to diversity, has joined Aston Law School at Aston University.
Simon Lee is an influential and highly experienced academic within the legal world, having been a Brackenbury Scholar at Balliol College, Oxford (1976-1979), a Harkness Fellow at Yale Law School (1979-1980), a lecturer in law at Trinity College, Oxford, and King’s College London, before becoming a professor of jurisprudence at Queen’s (1989-1995) and dean of the faculty of law.
Simon was rector and chief executive of Liverpool Hope University College (1995-2003) and Vice-Chancellor of Leeds Metropolitan University (2003-2009), both institutions winning various awards during his leadership1.
His contributions to the peace process in Northern Ireland included being the co-founder of Initiative ’92, which established the Opsahl Commission giving a voice to all-comers. He was appointed by governments to the Standing Advisory Commission on Human Rights in Northern Ireland (1992-6), the Standards Task Force on schools (1997-2001) and to chair the Independent Monitoring Board for the Liverpool Education Authority (1999-2000).
He was Chair of Level Partnerships (2010-2015), Executive Director of the Cambridge Theological Federation (2014-2016), a Fellow of St Edmund’s College, Cambridge (2015-2016) and a Visiting Fellow (2016-2018), before becoming professor of law at the Open University, director of research in the law school and director of the university’s citizenship and governance research. Simon was awarded honorary doctorates by Virginia Theological Seminary in 2011 and Liverpool Hope University in 2016.
Simon said:
“I am delighted to join Aston Law School where I look forward to dialogue with our students and encouraging inter-disciplinary research into justice, diversity and inclusion in partnership with communities in and beyond Birmingham.
Jonathan Fortnam, dean of Aston Law School, said:
“We are delighted that Simon is joining Aston Law School.
“The unrivalled depth and breadth of his experience is as relevant to our students and our beneficiaries today as it has ever been.
“Simon’s perspectives will make a significant contribution to the School as we seek to bring valuable insight to contemporary and complex issues that are shaping and impacting on our futures.”