European Union law expert appointed to Irish Journal editorial board

Senior Lecturer in European Union and Competition Law, Dr Sara Drake, has been appointed to the editorial board of Ireland’s leading European law journal, the Irish Journal of European Law (IJEL).

The IJEL was founded in 1992 and publishes papers on European law by experts from around the world including judges, practitioners, academics, and civil servants writing in a personal capacity. The IJEL is published under the auspices of the prestigious Irish Society for European Law (ISEL) which was itself established in 1973 as an association of practicing and academic lawyers with the object of promoting the study and practice of European Law in Ireland. ISEL is the Irish affiliated member of the prestigious Fédération Internationale de Droit Européen (FIDE).

Dr Drake was selected to join a new editorial team appointed following a governance review called by the ISEL’s President, Ireland’s Chief Justice, the Honourable Mr. Justice Frank Clarke with a view to re-establishing the journal’s presence as the leading reference point for scholarship on European law in Ireland following Brexit.

Since the start of this year, Dr Drake and her colleagues have been working on the latest issue of the journal which was published this week and is available on the IJEL website.

Dr Drake brings a wealth of experience and expertise to the IJEL board. She has written extensively in the field of EU law including its relationship with Irish law. She takes on the role as (long) articles editor working in close partnership the rest of the editorial team who are based all over Europe and drawn from academia, private practice, the EU institutions, and the judiciary. The journal publishes long and shorter articles, case notes, legislation notes as well as professional practice pieces and is available online via Westlaw and HeinOnline.

Speaking of her appointment to the Board, Dr Drake says, “As the UK withdraws its membership from the EU, I relish the opportunity to act as bridge between legal scholarship in the UK, Ireland and the EU as these critical relationships are reshaped. I already have a sound knowledge of Ireland’s relationship with the EU having previously taught EU law at the National University of Ireland, Galway, and will be able to draw upon my networks which stretch across the Europe as the lead co-ordinator for an interdisciplinary research network on the effective enforcement of EU law and policy. I am also excited about being involved in the IJEL’s mandate to encourage scholarship by new scholars as well as increasing the diversity of its authorship.”