a head shot of dr katy vaughan

Dr Katy Vaughan

Senior Lecturer, Law
Office - 104
First Floor
Richard Price Building
Singleton Campus
Available For Postgraduate Supervision

About

Katy is a Senior Lecturer in the School of Law, and the School’s Student Engagement Partner. She is a member of the Cyber Threats Research Centre (CYTREC), the VOX-Pol Network of Excellence, and the Christchurch Call Advisory Network.

Katy has a keen interest in Legal Education and has carried out a range of student focused roles since joining Swansea University. As the School’s Student Engagement Partner, Katy works with students and colleagues both within the School and across the Faculty and University to support the development of student engagement, learning and teaching, and the wider student experience.

Her current research focuses on counterterrorism law and policy and the impact of this on the protection and promotion of human rights, emphasising the importance to an effective counterterrorism strategy of respect for human rights. Her approach to research is rooted in the belief that these global challenges are best addressed by multi-stakeholder collaborations and engages regularly with Governments, the tech industry and civil society. 

Katy is currently one of the Co-Chairs of the Christchurch Call Advisory Network whose membership includes civil society, academia, and the technical community, which exists to provide advice to Governments and the tech industry within the Christchurch Call Community on addressing terrorist and violent extremist content online whilst protecting human rights and a free, open and secure internet. She has also been a member of the Global Internet Forum to Counter Terrorism (GIFCT) Legal Frameworks Working Group 2021/22 and 2022/23.

The focus of her PhD was the conflict between national security considerations and the right to a fair trial. Her thesis examined the compatibility of the use of closed material procedures under the Justice and Security Act 2013 with ECHR standards of fairness. Prior to commencing her PhD, Katy obtained an LLB (First-class honours, Swansea University) and an LLM in Human Rights and International Law (Distinction, University of Birmingham). She was appointed as a Lecturer in the School of Law in July 2016.

Areas Of Expertise

  • Counterterrorism
  • Human Rights
  • Public Law
  • Legal Education

Career Highlights

Teaching Interests
  • Counterterrorism Law and Policy
  • Human Rights
  • Equity and Trusts
Research Collaborations