Katherine Anderson
Katherine Anderson came to the University of Aberdeen in 2007 as a mature student to study for her LL.B. (Hons) in law. Despite the competing demands of work and five children, she successfully completed her degree in 2011. Having a long-standing interest in history and a family background in the Northern Isles, she decided that she would like to carry out research in the legal history of Orkney and Shetland.
When Orkney and Shetland became subject to Scottish control in 1468 and 1469 respectively, they brought with them a legal system derived from Norse legal traditions. Questions of the status of the Norse laws, and indeed of the islands themselves, have been the subject of much scholarly debate, and many problems remain unresolved. Accordingly, the topic of her Ph.D. is Sovereignty, Law and Administration in Orkney and Shetland, 1450-1650. When complete this will fill an important gap in the existing knowledge of this subject, focusing in particular on the effect of the transfer of sovereignty on the administration of justice.
This topic fits in well with the aims of the North Sea World project as the research will range from Scotland through Orkney and Shetland to Norway.
Katherine is also a tutor for LS1022, Foundations of Private Law.