Dr Thomas L Muinzer
Senior Lecturer in Energy Transition Law. School of Law
Email thomas.muinzer@abdn.ac.uk
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Research Profile
Dr Thomas L Muinzer is from Northern Ireland, and undertook his qualifying law degree and other legal qualifications at Queen's University Belfast.
His academic research focuses most pointedly on the Low Carbon Transition, with particular reference to climate law and governance and issues around decarbonisation of the energy sector. He has subsidiary and intersecting interests in the sphere of constitutional law, human rights protections, and the safe and responsible governance of energy and the environment.
-- His most recent book covers the world’s first example of national framework climate legislation: Climate and Energy Governance for the UK Low Carbon Transition: The Climate Change Act 2008 (Palgrave: UK, 2019).
-- His next book (contributing editor) provides the first comprehensive book-length study of climate change acts around the world: National Climate Change Acts: The Emergence, Form and Nature of National Framework Climate Legislation (Hart, forthcoming 2020).
He has received academic funding from UK Government, the Northern Irish Government, the Global Challenges Research Fund, and the Royal Town Planning Institute. He has been involved in an advisory capacity with a range of energy, environmental and other actors, including NGOs and governmental bodies.
Most Recent Academic Research Outputs
Muinzer, T. L. (2020). Conceptualising the Energy Constitution: Lessons from Northern Ireland. Energy Policy, 140, 111408.
Cowell, R., Ellis, G., Fischer, T., Jackson, T., Muinzer, T., & Sykes, O. (2020). Integrating Planning and Environmental Protection: An Analysis of post-Brexit Regulatory Styles and Practitioner Attitudes in the UK. Planning Theory & Practice, 1-21.
Selected Activities and Engagement
- 2020, Co-founder, Scottish Climate Emergency Legal Network, and member of the Legislation Working Group at the Legal Services Agency, Glasgow, which co-ordinates the Network.
- November 2019, appointed Co-Convenor of the Society of Legal Scholars’ Energy Law section.
- September 2017, appointed to the Law Society of Scotland's Education and Training (Policy) Committee and its Education and Training (Standard Setting) Sub-Committee, which regulate aspects of solicitors’ training in Scotland.
- July 2017 (onward), facilitator and provider of advisory support to the Centre for United Nations Constitutional Research (Brussels).
