We are delighted to announce the release of the latest edition of Ratio, the annual alumni magazine published by LSE Law School, available in both digital and print format. Dr Jan Zglinski, editor, writes:
Welcome to Ratio magazine!
‘For the betterment of society’ – these are familiar words to anyone who has set foot in LSE. The past months have given the School’s founding purpose a renewed relevance. High inflation and economic instability have severely affected social welfare, prompting what has come to be known as the cost of living crisis. It is this context in which we set out to write the present edition of Ratio, which tries to inform readers of the key developments that have taken place at the LSE Law School over the last academic year.
Working towards the betterment of society is not just a mission statement, it is a lived reality at LSE Law. The new issue provides yet another striking illustration of this. Both students and staff have tried to understand, analyse, and leave a positive impact on some of the most pressing debates of our times. Professor Niamh Moloney chaired the Irish Taxation and Welfare Commission, generating a report whose significance has been compared to that penned by the late LSE director William Beveridge in the 1940s, a milestone in establishing Britain’s welfare state. Dr Roxana Willis published pathbreaking ethnographic research on life in a disadvantaged housing estate in England, calling for a rethinking of the criminal justice system. A group of PhD researchers created a reading group to critically reflect on the economic problems surrounding us in London and the role which law plays in shaping them.
But there is, of course, so much more that is happening at the Law School. In the following pages, we will take you through the main changes, initiatives, and achievements that materialised during the 2022/23 academic session. You will learn about the new research which our colleagues have produced, such as Professor Martin Loughlin’s monograph Against Constitutionalism which has electrified the constitutional theory community; the impressive projects which alumni like Timothy Franklin, founder of the National School of Journalism and Public Discourse in India, have spearheaded; the many events we held over the course of the year, in which have covered topics ranging from the future of legal sex to the demise of the FTSE 100; as well as the work which has been done by and for students, including the new common room.
Ratio is a collaborative effort. I want to thank the editorial team – Dr Elizabeth Howell, Dr Mona Paulsen, Dr Andrew Scott, and Dr Sarah Trotter – for their stimulating contributions and hard work. Guy Jordan has, as in previous years, gone above and beyond to supply the photography, defying even the most adverse weather conditions. Finally, we all owe a debt of gratitude to Alexandra Klegg, whose vision and enthusiasm have been a staple of the production process. I hope you enjoy reading this issue as much as we enjoyed making it.
Dr Jan Zglinski
A pdf copy of Ratio 2023/24 can be downloaded here or you can browse a complete set from magazines from 2014 onwards, on the Ratio web page.