Scholars from the Aberdeen University Centre for Energy Law (AUCEL) played a central role in the energy law session of the recently concluded Society of Legal Scholars (SLS) conference at the University of Leeds. This was the 116th annual conference of the SLS marking the long-standing tradition of annual academic gatherings which attract hundreds of legal scholars across diverse fields of study.
The energy law session was led by Dr Thomas Muinzer, Reader in Energy Transition Law at the University of Aberdeen, who in July launched his book “Major Cases in Climate Law” with Hart Publishing, which was the first sole-authored introduction to court cases focused on climate change at the time of its release. In August, Thomas was nominated and shortlisted by the SLS for the Margaret Brazier Prize for Outstanding Legal Scholarship. He chaired the session alongside Dr Tabetha Kurtz-Shefford, Senior Lecturer at Swansea University.
Over the two days, participants explored intersections of energy and environmental law and engaged with perspectives from both the Global North and the Global South. The session featured presentations from two doctoral candidates from the University of Aberdeen. Leonard Sebucensha presented on “Energy Transition in the East African Community (EAC) from a Legal Perspective”, where he shared insights on how the EAC’s energy governance regimes can be enhanced to support climate mitigation, energy security, and the energy transition. Tayo Gbemi also delivered a presentation titled “Securing a Corporate Environmental Liability Regime for Co-Location of Offshore Wind Energy-CCUS Projects: A Global Best Practices Approach”, in which she highlighted the emerging legal challenges posed by the prospective co-location of offshore wind and carbon capture projects in the same marine area. She also advanced recommendations to address these challenges. The conversations sparked by these presentations were of such depth and resonance that they outlived the session itself, continuing to animate exchanges among scholars well after its close.
AUCEL’s active representation and contribution to the energy section of the conference reinforce its commitment to advancing cross-cutting research and discourses shaping contemporary energy and environmental law. With the SLS announcing that its 117th annual conference will be hosted by the University of East Anglia in September 2026 under the theme “Doing Law Differently”, AUCEL is poised to build on this momentum and further consolidate its leadership in energy and environmental law scholarship at both national and international levels.