Professor Katarina Trimmings

Professor Katarina Trimmings
Professor Katarina Trimmings
Professor Katarina Trimmings

FHEA

Personal Chair

Accepting PhDs

About
Email Address
k.trimmings@abdn.ac.uk
Telephone Number
+44 (0)1224 272415
School/Department
School of Law

Biography

Katarina Trimmings joined the Law School of the University of Aberdeen as a Lecturer in August 2012 and was later promoted to a Senior Lecturer. She is a co-founder and the Director of the Centre for Private International Law at the Law School of the University of Aberdeen.

Professor Trimmings is an internationally recognized expert in the field of International Family Law, in particular in the areas of international parental child abduction and cross-border surrogacy. Her research has explored new avenues and developed unique perspectives, including the Private International Law perspective and the Child’s Rights perspective on surrogacy, and analysis of the implications of societal challenges such as domestic abuse on the legal resolution of parental child abduction cases. She has written a monograph on child abduction (Hart, 2013); and is the first editor of a recently published book on the intersection between child abduction and domestic violence (Intersentia, 2022). She is also the first editor of a highly regarded and frequently cited book on international surrogacy arrangements (Hart, 2013) and a forthcoming research handbook on surrogacy (Elgar Publishing, 2023). Professor Trimmings is also the co-author of the 15th edition of Cheshire, North & Fawcett, Private International Law (OUP, 2017). 

Memberships and Affiliations

Internal Memberships

Director of the Centre for Private International Law at the Law School of the University of Aberdeen http://www.abdn.ac.uk/law/research/centre-for-private-international-law-70.php

Academic Line Manager

Law School Grants Lead

Personal Tutor

 

 

 

External Memberships

Fellow of the Higher Education Academy

Research

Research Overview

  • International Family Law

Research Areas

Accepting PhDs

I am currently accepting PhDs in Law.


Please get in touch if you would like to discuss your research ideas further.

Email Me

Law

Supervising
Accepting PhDs

Current Research

Professor Trimmings' current research centres on the themes of surrogacy and international parental child abduction. Additionally, she is interested in the adequacy and potential reform of the Private International Law regulation in Scotland post-Brexit. At present, Professor Trimmings is working on two collaborative RSE-funded projects: 1.) ‘Protection of international families with links to the European Union post-Brexit: Collaborative Scotland-EU Partnership’ (PI); and 2.) ‘Laying the Foundations for a Restatement of Scots Private International Law’ (Co-I). Both projects aim to assess the implications of Brexit for Scots Private International Law with a view to proposing necessary reforms (Co-I). 

Past Research

Over the past few years, Professor Trimmings has completed a number of externally funded research projects as the PI and conducted several commissioned studies. Her research concentrated on two themes. They build on her interests in intersections between legal fields and their impact on addressing societal challenges through innovative legal solutions that are scholarly robust and of use for policymakers, legal profession and wider public. Theme 1 is intersection between domestic violence and international parental child abduction; and theme 2 is the child right’s perspective as a basis for regulation of the legal status of children.  

Featured activity:         

  1. POAM project. Funded by the EU (PI).
  2. Research study into attitudes towards the reform of the law governing surrogacy amongst judges and legal practitioners in Scotland. Funded by the Clark Foundation (PI).
  3. Project 'Reproductive Health Care and Policy Concerns: Regulation of Surrogacy Arrangements in Sri Lanka and Lessons Learned from the United Kingdom'. Funded by the British Council (PI). 
  4. Development of legal principles for the protection of the rights of the child born through surrogacy (‘Verona Principles’) (co-author).
  5. Research study on the reform of the European Convention on the Legal Status of Children Born Out of Wedlock. Commissioned and funded by the Council of Europe. Output: policy report

Collaborations

 

Funding and Grants

  1. Royal Society of Edinburgh, Saltire Network Scheme (2022) - Project: 'Protection of international families with links to the European Union post-Brexit: Collaborative Scotland-EU partnership (‘International Families post-Brexit’)' (PI)
  2. Royal Society of Edinburgh, Research Workshop Grants Scheme (2022) - Project: 'Laying the Foundations for a Restatement of Scots Private International Law' (Co-I)
  3. Council of Europe (2021) - Project: 'Review of the Implementation of the European Convention on the Legal Status of Children Born Out of Wedlock' (PI)
  4. European Commission, Erasmus+ Strategic Partnership Programme (2021) - Project: 'Time to Become Digital in Law ('DIGinLaw')' (Co-I)
  5. British Council, South Asia Small-Scale Research Project Scheme (2020) - Project: 'Reproductive Health Care and Policy Concerns: Regulation of Surrogacy Arrangements in Sri Lanka and Lessons Learned from the United Kingdom (‘Surrogacy in Sri Lanka’)' (PI)
  6. Clark Foundation for Legal Education (2019) - Project: 'UK Surrogacy Law Reform: Exploring the Application of Surrogacy Laws, Attitudes towards Surrogacy, and Attitudes towards the Reform of the Law Governing Surrogacy amongst Judges and Legal Practitioners in Scotland’ (PI)
  7. European Union, Rights, Equality and Citizenship Programme (2018) - Project: 'Protection of Abducting Mothers in Return Proceedings: Intersection between Domestic Violence and Parental Child Abduction' (POAM Project)' (PI)
  8. European Union, Civil Justice Programme (2013) - Project: 'Cross-Border Litigation in Europe: Private International Law Legislative Framework, National Courts and the Court of Justice of the European Union' (EUPILLAR Project)' (Co-I)
  9. EU Lifelong Learning Programme, the Jean Monnet Scheme (2012). Project aim: organisation of a series of workshops on cross-border litigation in Europe. (Co-I)
  10. Nuffield Foundation (2010) - Project: 'International Surrogacy Arrangements: An Urgent Need for Legal Regulation at the International Level' (Postdoc)
Teaching

Teaching Responsibilities

In 2024/25, Professor Trimmings is the course co-ordinator for the following course:

Family Law (Honours) LS401V

 

In addition, Dr Trimmings participates in teaching on the following courses:

1.)  Family Law LS2526

2.) Law & Medical Ethics (Honours) LS4553

3.) Family Law (Honours) LS401V

4.) Gender, Law & Society (Honours) LS/LX401E

 

 

Publications

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  • Intersection between Domestic Violence and International Parental Child Abduction: Protection of Abducting Mothers in Return Proceedings

    Trimmings, K., Momoh, O.
    International Journal of Law, Policy and The Family, vol. 35, no. 1, ebab001
    Contributions to Journals: Articles
  • International family law in the United Kingdom beyond Brexit: Focus on matrimonial matters and future interpretation of habitual residence of the child.

    Trimmings, K., Kalaitsoglou, K.
    Volume XXII Yearbook of Private International Law – 2020/2021. Bonomi, A., Romano, G. P., Pretelli, I. (eds.). de Gruyter, pp. 77-94, 18 pages
    Chapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: Chapters
  • Return of a child under the 1980 Hague child abduction convention to a ‘third state’?

    Trimmings, K.
    Journal of Social Welfare and Family Law, vol. 43, no. 2, pp. 202-204
    Contributions to Journals: Articles
  • Surrogacy arrangements and the best interest of the child: the human rights and private international law dimensions in the case-law of the European Court of Human Rights

    Trimmings, K.
    Fundamental Rights and the Best Interest of the Child in Transnational Families. Bergamini, E., Ragni, C. (eds.). Intersentia
    Chapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: Chapters
  • Non-Uniform Application of European Union Private International Law

    Trimmings, K., Yuksel, B.
    Diversity and Integration in Private International Law . Ruiz Abou-Nigm, V., Blanca Noodt Taquela, M. (eds.). Edinburgh University Press, pp. 83-94, 12 pages
    Chapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: Chapters
  • Surrogacy before the European Court of Human Rights

    Trimmings, K., Beaumont, P. R.
    Eastern and Western Perspectives on Surrogacy. Scherpe, J. M., Fenton-Glynn, C., Kaan, T. (eds.). Intersentia, pp. 329-
    Chapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: Chapters
  • Protection of Abducting Mothers in Return Proceedings: Intersection between Domestic Violence and Parental Child Abduction

    Momoh, O., Trimmings, K., Callander, I.
    Commissioned by European Union’s Rights, Equality and Citizenship Programme 2014-2020.
    Books and Reports: Commissioned Reports
  • Choice of law aspects of non-consensual adoption of Eastern European children in England and Wales

    Yuksel, B., Trimmings, K.
    International Family Law, no. 3, pp. 202-209
    Contributions to Journals: Articles
  • Cheshire, North & Fawcett: Private International Law

    Trimmings, K., Torremans, P., Mills, A., Grusic, U., Heinze, C.
    Oxford University Press
    Books and Reports: Books
  • Court of Justice of the European Union's Case Law on Family Law Matters Under Brussels IIa and Maintenance

    Trimmings, K., Beaumont, P. R.
    Cross-Border Litigation in Europe. Beaumont, P., Trimmings, K., Danov, M., Yuksel, B. (eds.). Hart Publishing
    Chapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: Chapters (Peer-Reviewed)
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