Staff profile

Shaun Pattinson joined the Law School in 2006 and has been Professor of Medical Law and Ethics since 2013. He founded Durham CELLS (Centre for Ethics and Law in the Life Sciences) in 2011.

Shaun has a law degree from the University of Hull, a Master's degree (in Biotechnological Law and Ethics) and PhD from the University of Sheffield, and a higher doctorate (Doctor of Letters: DLitt) from Durham University. He is a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (SFHEA), a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts (FRSA) and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Biology (FRSB). He has been a visiting scholar at the universities of Helsinki and Maastricht, and was a Leverhulme Major Research Fellow from Oct 2020 to Sept 2022.

At Durham, Shaun has held various administrative roles, including Deputy Dean of School, Director of Postgraduate Research (twice), Director of Durham CELLS (several times), REF mentor, Director of Recruitment and Chair of the LLM Board of Examiners. 

Research

Shaun's books include Influencing Traits Before Birth (2002); Revisiting Landmark Cases in Medical Law (2018); Medical Law and Ethics (6th edn, 2020) and Law at the Frontiers of Biomedicine (2023). The first edition of Medical Law and Ethics was supported by an AHRC Research Leave award and the second edition was awarded the 2010 Minty Medico-Legal Society Prize for best medico-legal book. The writing of Law at the Frontiers of Biomedicine was supported by a Leverhulme Major Research Fellowship. For reviews of these books see: Johnson 2003; Skene 2004; Harris-Short 2005; Smith 2006; Ryan 2007; McAlister 2015; Brownsword 2023.

Shaun has been awarded research grants by the AHRC, British Academy, Leverhulme Trust, SLS and Wellcome Trust. He has given papers at many UK universities and in Australia, Belgium, Canada, Croatia, Czech Republic, Finland, Germany, Ireland, the Netherlands, Portugal and the US. He edited Medical Law International from July 2005 to July 2011, and is a member of the editorial boards of the Journal of Bioethical Inquiry and The Biologist. He has advised the Canadian Donation and Transplantation Research Program (CNTRP).

Shaun was Deputy Chair of the Nuffield Council on Bioethics, which is the closest that the UK has to a national bioethics committee. He was a member for 6 years (until April 2021) and, for the final two years of his term, Deputy Chair of the Council and Chair of the Council's Horizon Scanning Advisory Group. He was one of the seven-member Working Group on Non-Invasive Prenatal Testing (NIPT), which launched its report  in the Speaker's House in the Palace of Westminster in March 2017, and contributed to the workshop/publication on research on human embryos: Human Embryo Culture.

Shaun is currently a member of the Council of Governors of South Tees NHS Trust.

Research students

I am available to supervise PhDs in any area of medical law and ethics to start in October 2024. Please read the information here for advice on Durham’s entry requirements and the content of a good PhD proposal. I am happy to provide advice on your draft proposal, but please ensure that it connects in some way to my expertise. I am not an empirical researcher.

Research students - current

• PhD: Yuxin Li (p), Oluseyi Olayanju
  

Primary supervisions marked with (p)

Research students - successfully completed

• PhD: Thomas Bennett, Benedict Douglas; Daniel Fenwick (p); Marianna Iliadou (p), Joshua Jowitt; Daniel Lowe, Clayton Ó Néill (p), Zoe Tongue (p)
• MJur: Jessica Birch (p); Aileen Editha (p), Daniel Fenwick (p); Elizabeth Gibbison (née Robinson) (p); Chantell Kimpson (née Burrows); Rebecca Lassey (née Blackburn) (p), Connor Wright (p)

• Medical Law
• Moral Theory (especially medical ethics)
• Human Rights

• Centre for Ethics and Law in the Life Sciences
• Durham Centre for Law and Philosophy
• Human Rights Centre

• Grants

• 2020: Law at the Frontiers of Biomedicine(£90444.44 from Leverhulme Trust)
• 2015: Incentivising Innovation and Higher Standards in Regulation and Liability Relating to Medicines (Society of Legal Scholars, £9,417) PI: Goldberg CI: Pattinson
• 2014: 2014-2017 Human Cloning and Stem Cell Research Through the Medium of Law (Wellcome Trust, £29,961). PI: Pattinson CIs: Douglas & Kind.

Available for media contact about:

• English Law: Medical law
• Ethics: Medical ethics

Authored book

• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2023). Law at the Frontiers of Biomedicine: Creating, Enhancing and Extending Human Life. Oxford: Hart Publishing.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2020). Medical Law and Ethics. 6th ed., London: Sweet & Maxwell.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2018). Revisiting Landmark Cases in Medical Law. Abingdon: Routledge.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2017). Medical Law and Ethics. 5th ed., London: Sweet & Maxwell.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2014). Medical Law and Ethics. 4th ed., London: Sweet & Maxwell.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2011). Medical Law and Ethics. 3rd ed., London: Sweet & Maxwell.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2009). Medical Law and Ethics. 2nd ed., London: Sweet & Maxwell.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2006). Medical Law and Ethics. 1st ed., London: Sweet & Maxwell.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2002). Influencing Traits Before Birth. Aldershot: Ashgate.

Book review

• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2007). Review Article: First Do No Harm. Medical Law International 8(3): 251-276.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2006). Review of Michael Jones and Anne Morris, Blackstone's Statues on Medical Law. Student Law Review 67(56).
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2001). Review of Andrei Marmor, Positive Law and Objective Values. Legal Studies 21(4): 697-700.

Chapter in book

• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2017). Some Comments on Developmental Thresholds and their Moral and Policy Significance. In Human Embryo Culture. Nuffield Council on Bioethics. 81–83.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2017). Advance Refusals and the Personal Identity Objection. In Ethical Rationalism and the Law. Capps, Patrick & Pattinson, Shaun D. Oxford: Hart Publishing. 91-108.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. & Capps, Patrick (2017). The Past, Present and Future of Ethical Rationalism. In Ethical Rationalism and the Law. Capps, Patrick & Pattinson, Shaun D. Oxford: Hart Publishing. 1-16.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2015). Contemporaneous and Advance Requests: The Fight for Rights at the End of Life. In Landmark Cases in Medical Law. Jonathan Herring & Jesse Wall Oxford: Hart Publishing. 255-269.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. & Beyleveld, Deryck (2010). Confidentiality and Data Protection. In Principles of Medical Law. Grubb, Andrew, Laing, Judith & McHale, Jean Oxford: Oxford University Press. 651-723.
• Beyleveld, D., Finnegan, T. & Pattinson, Shaun D. (2009). The Regulation of Hybrids and Chimeras in the UK. In Chimbrids: Chimeras and Hybrids in Comparative European and International Research: Scientific, Ethical, Philosophical and Legal Aspects. Taupitz, J. & Weschka, M. Berlin: Springer. 34: 645–666.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2008). Reproductive Cloning. In The New Oxford Companion to Law. Cane, Peter & Conaghan, Joanne Oxford: Oxford University Press. 1013-1014.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2008). Prenatal Testing. In The New Oxford Companion to Law. Cane, Peter & Conaghan, Joanne Oxford: Oxford University Press. 925.
• Beyleveld, D. & Pattinson, Shaun D. (2008). Moral Interests, Privacy and Medical Research. In International Public Health Policy and Ethics. Michael Boylan Netherlands: Springer. 42: 45-57.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. & Beyleveld, D. (2007). Landesbericht Grossbritannien. In Internationale Perspektiven zu Status und Schutz des extrakorporalen: International Perspectives on the Status and Protection of the Extracorporeal Embryo. Eser, A., Koch, HG. & Seith C. Baden-Baden: Nomos. 171-203.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2005). Designing Donors. In Ethics, Law and Society. Gunning, J. & Holm, S. Aldershot: Ashgate. 251-256.
• Beyleveld, Deryck. & Pattinson, Shaun. (2004). Globalisation and Human Dignity: Some Effects and Implications for the Creation and Use of Embryos. In Global Governance and the Quest for Justice Volume IV: Human Rights.. Brownsword, Roger. Oxford.: Hart. 185-202.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. & Beyleveld, D. (2004). Individual Rights, Social Justice, and the Allocation of Advances in Biotechnology. In Public Health, Policy and Ethics. Boylan, M. The Hague: Kluwer International. 59-72.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2003). Current Legislation in Europe. In The Regulation of Assisted Reproductive Technology. Gunning, J. & Szoke, H. Aldershot: Ashgate. 7-19.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. & Beyleveld, D. (2001). Embryo Research in the UK: Is Harmonisation in the EU Needed or Possible? In Embryo Experimentation in Europe. Friele, M. Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler: European Academy. 58-74.
• Beyleveld, Deryck. & Pattinson, Shaun. (2000). Legal Regulation of Assisted Procreation, Genetic Diagnosis and Gene Therapy. In The Ethics of Genetics in Human Procreation. Beyleveld, D. & Haker, H. Aldershot.: Ashgate. 215-276.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. & Beyleveld, D. (2000). Precautionary Reason as a Link to Moral Action. In Medical Ethics. Boylan, M. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Prentice-Hall. 39-53.

Edited book

• Pattinson, Shaun D. & Capps, Patrick (2017). Ethical Rationalism and the Law. Oxford: Hart Publishing.

Journal Article

• Pattinson, Shaun D. & Kind, Vanessa (2017). Using a Moot to Develop Students’ Understanding of Human Cloning and Statutory Interpretation. Medical Law International 17(3): 111-133.
• Gerke, Sara & Pattinson, Shaun D. (2017). EU Marketing Authorisation of Orphan Medicinal Products and Its Impact on Related Research. European Journal of Health Law 24(5): 541-564.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2015). The Human Rights Act and the Doctrine of Precedent. Legal Studies 35(1): 142-164.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2012). Emergency Research and the Interests of Participants. Medical Law International 12(2): 121-141.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2012). The Value of Bodily Material: Acquiring and Allocating Human Gametes. Medical Law Review 20(4): 576-603.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2011). Directed donation and ownership of human organs. Legal Studies 31(3): 392-410.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. & Beyleveld, Deryck. (2010). Defending Moral Precaution as a Solution to the Problem of Other Minds: A Reply to Holm and Coggon. Ratio Juris 23(2): 258-273.
• Caulfield, Timothy, Pattinson, Shaun D. & 22 additional authors (2009). International stem cell environments: a world of difference. Nature Reports Stem Cells
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2009). Consent and informational responsibility. Journal of Medical Ethics 35(3): 176-179.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2008). 'Organ Trading, Tourism, and Trafficking within Europe'. Medicine and Law 27(1): 191–201.
• Caulfield, Timothy, Pattinson, Shaun D. & 27 additional authors. (2007). Stem Cell Research Ethics: Consensus Statement on Emerging Issues. Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology Canada October: 843-848.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. & Beyleveld, D. (2006). Medical Research into Emergency Treatment: Regulatory Tensions in England and Wales. Web Journal of Current Legal Issues 5.
• Pattinson, Shaun. D. (2005). Some Problems Challenging the UK's Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority. Medicine and Law 24(2): 391-401.
• Pattinson, Shaun. D. & Caulfield, Timothy (2004). Variations and voids: the regulation of human cloning around the world. BMC Medical Ethics 5: 9.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2003). Paying Living Organ Providers. Web Journal of Current Legal Issues 3.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2002). Undue influence in the context of medical treatment. Medical law international 5(4): 305-317.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. & Beyleveld, Deryck. (2002). 'Horizontal Applicability and Horizontal Effect'. Law Quarterly Review 118: 623-646.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2002). 'Reproductive Cloning: Can Cloning Harm the Clone?'. Medical Law Review 10(3): 295-307.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2000). Regulating Germ-Line Gene Therapy to Avoid Sliding Down the Slippery Slope. Medical Law International 4(3 & 4): 213-222.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (1999). Wrongful Life Actions as a Means of Regulating Use of Genetic and Reproductive Technologies. Health Law Journal 7: 19-34.

Manual

• Pattinson, Shaun D., Kind, Vanessa & Douglas, Benedict (2017). Ethics Activity Pack.
• Pattinson, Shaun D., Kind, Vanessa, Douglas, Benedict & Howell, Mary (2017). Human Cloning Activity Pack.
• Pattinson, Shaun D., Kind, Vanessa, Douglas, Benedict & Howell, Mary (2017). Stem Cell Research Activity Pack.

Other (Print)

• Pattinson, Shaun D. & Kind, Vanessa (2018). No Uncertain Terms. The Biologist 65(5) p6 65(5): 6-7.
• Pattinson, Shaun D., Douglas, Benedict & Kind, Vanessa (2015). Using Law to Develop Post-16 Students’ Understanding of Stem Cell Research. Durham Law School Briefing Document
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2010). What's Interesting About Medical Law? Academic News (Autumn/Winter): 20-22.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2007). Stem Cells. The Ethical Issues. Durham First
• Pattinson, Shaun D., & Harpwood, V. (2006). Change and Continuity. Medical Law International 7(3): 181-182.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. & Beyleveld, D. (2006). Amending the Clinical Trials Regulations 2004. Medical Law Monitor 13(5): 2-5.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2006). FIGO Committee for the Ethical Aspects of Human Reproduction and Women's Health: Editorial Introduction. Medical Law International 7(4): 361.
• Pattinson, Shaun D (1998). Second Conference of the European Network for Biomedical Ethics: Genetics in Human Reproduction. Biomedical Ethics 3(2): 61-62.

Presentation

• Pattinson, Shaun D (2022), Some Human Rights and Equality Issues Raised by the Genome Editing of Embryos, SLSA Annual Conference 2022. Hybrid (York and online).
• Pattinson, Shaun D (2022), The Future of Heritable Genome Editing, 14th World Conference on Bioethics, Medical Ethics and Health Law,. Porto, Portugal.
• Pattinson, Shaun D (2022), The Future of Heritable Genome Editing: Law and Equality, Durham CELLS and Law & Philosophy Seminar.
• Pattinson, Shaun D (2021), Understanding Ethics: Bioethics and AI, Live Webinar. DeepMind.
• Pattinson, Shaun D (2021), Legal Academia, Live Webinar. University of Hull.
• Pattinson, Shaun D (2019), Tony Bland as a 'Novel Being', Novel Beings in the Humanities. Newcastle University.
• Pattinson, Shaun D (2019), Bioethics by Committee, SLS Annual Conference 2019. Preston.
• Pattinson, Shaun D., Benedict Douglas & Vanessa Kind (2017), Teaching Controversial Issues: A Law-in-Action Workshop on Stem Cell Research for Post-16 Students, [2 x 1 hour papers] ASE Annual Conference. University of Reading.
• Pattinson, Shaun D (2017), Canada’s Role in Advancing Transplantation and Donation: Ethics and Policy, CNTRP Annual Scientific Conference. Mont-Tremblant, QC, Canada.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2017), Revisiting Landmark Cases in Medical Law: R v Adams, [Keynote Paper] SLS Annual Conference 2017. Dublin, Ireland.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2016), Using a Moot to Develop Students' Understanding of Human Cloning and Statutory Interpretation, SLS Annual Conference 2016. University of Oxford.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2016), Nuffield Council on Bioethics’ work on NIPT so far, Non-invasive Prenatal Testing: The Challenges for Public Health, Law and Ethics. Bournemouth University.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2016), Some Comments on Developmental Thresholds and their Moral and Policy Significance, Workshop: Statutory Time Limit for Maintaining Human Embryos in Culture. NCOB, London.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. & Kind, Vanessa (2015), Developing Understanding of Stem Cell Research: Results of a Law-in-action Workshop with Post-16 Students, Invited paper. University of Sheffield.
• Pattinson, Shaun D (2015), Advance Refusals and the Personal Identity Objection, Ethical Rationalism and the Law. Durham Castle.
• Pattinson, Shaun D (2014), The Ethics of Stem Cell Research, Matariki Workshop on Research Ethics. University of Tübingen, Germany.
• Pattinson, Shaun D (2013), The Human Rights Act and the Doctrine of Precedent, Staff seminar paper. Durham University.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2012), Legally and Ethically Addressing the Shortage of Human Gametes, Invited paper. University of Leuven (KU Leuven), Belgium.
• Pattinson, Shaun D (2012), Acquiring and Allocating Human Gametes, Invited paper. Maastricht University, the Netherlands.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2012), Emergency Research: Law & Policy in the UK, Health Research Authority workshop Emergency research: when consent might kill you. London.
• Pattinson, Shaun D (2012), Bringing Stem Cell Research to Clinical Application, Regulating Research in the Life Sciences in a Globalised World: Case Studies. Durham University.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2011), Research Ethics in Biomedicine: Commercialisation and Commodification, Research ethics in the life sciences. University of Tübingen, Germany.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2011), Donor Autonomy and the Allocation of Donated Organs for Transplantation, Issues in Biosciences: Regulation and Social Impact. Durham University.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2010), Deceased Organ Donation: Conditional and Directed Donation, 18th World Congress on Medical Law. Zagreb, Croatia.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2010), Directed Donation and Ownership of Human Organs, Invited paper. University of Hull.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2009), Response to the Stem Cell Conundrum and Mapping Global Distributions of hES Cell Lines, Lay of the Land. Montreal, Canada.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2008), Consent: Informational Symmetry and Asymmetry, Invited paper. Birkbeck, University of London.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2007), Some Thoughts on Registration of Clinical Trials Involving Human Stem Cell Therapies, Invited paper. Montreal, Canada.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2007), The Legal Aspects of Organ Tourism, from a European Perspective, 13th Congress of the European Society for Organ Transplantation. Prague, Czech Republic.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2007), Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Some Regulatory Tensions, Invited paper. PEALS, University of Newcastle.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2006), Cloning and Judicial Reasoning, Durham.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2004), The Role of Dignity in the Cloning Debate, Invited paper, American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). Washington, United States.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2004), Cloning and Human Dignity, Invited paper. University of Helsinki, Finland.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2004), An Evaluation of the UK's Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act, 15th World Congress on Medical Law. Syndey, Australia.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2004), Response to Dignity as Constraint, Invited paper. Montreal, Canada.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2003), Globalisation, Commerce and Human Organs, Global Governance and the Search for Global Justice. University of Sheffield.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2003), Paying Living Organ Providers, Invited paper. University of Helsinki, Finland.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2003), The Donor as Vendor, Lent Lecture Series. Centre of Medical Law and Ethics, King's College, University of London.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2003), Human Cloning: The Legal Position, European Medical Students Association (EMSA). University of Sheffield.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2002), Reproductive Cloning: Can Cloning Harm the Clone?, 14th World Congress on Medical Law. Maastricht, the Netherlands.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2002), Undue Influence in the Context of Medical Treatment, Invited paper. University of Sheffield.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2001), Floodgates and Slippery Slopes in Legal Argumentation, Society for Public Teachers of Law (SPTL) Conference. Glasgow.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (2000), Regulating Germ-line Gene Therapy to Avoid Sliding Down the Slippery Slope, 13th World Congress on Medical Law. Helsinki, Finland.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (1999), Legal Regulation of Assisted Procreation, Genetic Diangosis and Gene Therapy, Third Conference of the European Network of Biomedical Ethics. University of Sheffield.
• Pattinson, Shaun D. (1998), The Moral Status of Non-human Animals, Invited paper. Centre for Social Ethics and Policy, University of Manchester.

Report

• Shakespeare,T., Bryant, L., Clancy, T., Clarke, A., Deans, Z., Pattinson, S. D. & Walker, C. L. (2017). Non-invasive Prenatal Testing: Ethical Issues. Nuffield Council on Bioethics.