James Murray

He has a particular expertise on the law around academic freedom and free expression on campus, on which he has advised institutions, academics, think tanks, politicians and the Government, often on complex employment and free expression issues, including both disputes and compliance matters.

He has published multiple articles on academic freedom, in addition to submissions of evidence to the Special Rapporteur on Freedom of expression, the UK Parliament’s Joint Committee on Human Rights, and the House of Commons Public Bill Committee in relation to the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Act 2023 (both individually and in collaboration with English PEN, one of the world’s oldest human rights organisations).

James is a Research Fellow (Law and Policy) at the University of Buckingham, and has published several academic papers on the law concerning academic freedom and free expression on campus, a topic on which he regularly speaks and has been quoted in the national press.

He is also an Academic Visitor at the University of Oxford (Humanities Division and Kellogg College), as part of which he hosts discussions and conducts research on academic freedom and free speech on campus.

Media Coverage

• Watch James’ lecture at UCL Law School
• Read him in the Times Higher Education on the HE Act: The free speech bill has finally become law; and The UK’s Freedom of Speech bill needs an exemption for heckling
• Read him on academic free expression in The Critic:; and, the Employment Lawyers Association Briefing

Experience and Qualifications

• Qualified in 2015

Professional memberships

• Employment Lawyers’ Association (ELA)