Comparative and international human rights law research can be decisive in advancing public interest causes in an increasingly interconnected legal field. Court decisions, laws and policies regularly draw upon international, regional and other domestic jurisdictions. The purpose of Oxford Pro Bono Publico (OPBP) is to bridge this gap and contribute to the practice and principles of public interest law by connecting the academic resources of the University of Oxford, including our students, with organisations working on public interest causes worldwide.

In the complex and dynamic world of law, access to high-quality legal research can make the difference in winning a case, serving justice, or improving laws and public policies. The growing practice of courts of relying on international and regional human rights law, and even exploring foreign decisions, and of legislators and policymakers drawing upon comparative experiences to develop laws and public policies, has made international and comparative legal research an important tool for advancing public interest causes. However, many organisations that provide pro bono services operate in the context of limited financial, material or personal resources, hampering their capacity to conduct thorough legal research of this kind.

At Oxford Pro Bono Publico (OPBP), we recognise the key role that legal research plays in advancing justice and supporting public interest causes. Through our projects, we aim to support individuals and organisations that are themselves working on these causes on a pro bono basis. We also aim to expand the experience of postgraduate students beyond the classroom, by engaging them in international and comparative research to assist organisations in the preparation of research briefs, expert opinions, amicus curiae briefs, policy submissions, and reports.

OPBP’s activities

OPBP brings together postgraduate students and supervisors from the Faculty of Law at the University of Oxford to support public interest causes through pro bono legal research, particularly in the fields of international and comparative law. Over the past 15 years, OPBP has completed more than 50 projects for several partner organisations across more than 10 jurisdictions.

By producing research briefs and comparative reports, OPBP aims to expand access to justice broadly, helping to level the playing field for organisations and individuals that might otherwise lack the resources for conducting comprehensive comparative and international legal analysis. From human rights cases and environmental justice to criminal procedure law and the regulation of social media intermediaries, OPBP’s research supports public interest litigation and advocacy efforts that can lead to significant legal and social changes.

OPBP’s projects have provided material to support organisations and individuals in different activities, such as developing advocacy briefings, contributing to legislation review, drafting thematic reports to the United Nations, and substantiating arguments in domestic and international cases.

OPBP’s model offers significant advantages to both our project partners and the students involved. Project partners can leverage the expertise and resources of the University of Oxford and access high-quality research to support their pro bono activities at no cost. The diversity of Oxford’s postgraduate students, who come from different jurisdictions and have experience in various fields, is a distinguishing feature of the OPBP. It allows for research into many topics and jurisdictions and ensures that it is carried out by people who are familiar with the particular theme and legal system of each project.

Meanwhile, students have the opportunity to concretely contribute to important causes while pursuing their studies and gain practical experience in legal research and writing.

“Participating in OPBP projects has been very rewarding, it allows me to contribute to important legal issues, ranging from criminal to human rights law, while gaining research experience”, said Ronak Rodrigues, an MSc candidate at the University of Oxford.

Working with OPBP

If you or your organisation works pro bono, would benefit from high-quality international or comparative law research, and wish to discuss the assistance OPBP can provide, we look forward to hearing from you at opbp@law.ox.ac.uk.

We also invite law postgraduate students at Oxford University to participate in OPBP’s future projects. Keep an eye on calls for applications on your institutional email or our social media accounts (LinkedIn and X).

To learn more about our work or to get involved, please visit our website.