Dr Fatima Ozcan

Biography

Fatıma is a Lecturer in Maritime and Commercial Law at the School of Law. Her research and teaching focus on maritime law, marine insurance law, commercial law, and the intersection of law and technology.

Before joining Aberdeen, she was a Research Fellow at the Centre for Maritime Law at the National University of Singapore, where she conducted postdoctoral research. Prior to that, she was a part-time Lecturer at the University of Southampton and served as Co-Editor-in-Chief of the Southampton Student Law Review, overseeing the editing and publication of legal scholarship. In addition, she spent several years with Public Policy Southampton, latterly serving as Senior Policy Associate, where she coordinated responses to consultations issued by the UK, Scottish, and Welsh Governments and Parliaments. 

She regularly presents her research at conferences and academic events across Europe and Asia, with speaking engagements and invited lectures in the UK, Ireland, Türkiye, Thailand, Indonesia, Pakistan, Singapore, India and Russia. Her research has been published in leading journals and edited collections, including the Journal of Business Law (forthcoming), WMU Journal of Maritime Affairs, and Tulane Maritime Law Journal. During her PhD, she secured a £5,000 New Things Fund award as Principal Investigator for a project examining the regulation of cyber risks in autonomous shipping, resulting in a policy brief and stakeholder-focused analysis.

Fatıma obtained her PhD from the University of Southampton with a doctoral thesis entitled "Cyber Cover of Autonomous Ships in the Context of Marine Insurance Law". She also holds an LLM in International Maritime Law from Swansea University and an LLB from Kırıkkale University, Türkiye. In addition, she is a qualified lawyer in Türkiye.

Prizes and Awards

New Things Fund Award, University of Southampton — £5,000 for "Navigating Cyber Risks on Autonomous Ships" (2024)

Yeosu Academy of the Law of the Sea Scholarship, Korean Maritime Institute (2022)

Research Overview

Maritime law, marine insurance law, commercial law, law and technology, autonomous shipping, and maritime cybersecurity. 

Fatıma would be interested in supervising postgraduate research students working in any of these areas.

Teaching Responsibilities

LS453F / LX453F Shipping Law (Course Coordinator)

LS505U Legal Liabilities in Maritime Law (Course Coordinator)