Daniel Matthews

Associate Professor

Director of PGR Studies

Legal Theory; Political Theory; Law and the Humanities; Constitutional Theory; Climate Change; Political Ecology

School of Law
S2.16, Social Sciences Building
University of Warwick
Coventry CV4 7AL
United Kingdom

024 765 23094

Scholarship

Daniel's primary interests lie in theories of sovereignty and political community. His most recent work examines how both orthodox and critical approaches to sovereignty are being challenged by planetary climatic change and the onset of the Anthropocene. Taking a transdisciplinary approach, his work draws on critical legal theory, political theory, literature, aesthetics and ecology. Daniel's first monograph – Earthbound: The Aesthetics of Sovereignty in the Anthropocene (EUP, 2021) – was awarded the Penny Pether Prize by The Law, Literature and the Humanities Association of Australasia.

Bio

Dr Daniel Matthews is Associate Professor of Law at the Warwick Law School, University of Warwick. He teaches and publishes in the fields of jurisprudence, political theory, and law and the humanities. Daniel holds a BA(Hons) in Philosophy and English Literature (University of Sussex); an MA in Critical Theory (University of Sussex); a Graduate Diploma in Law (University of East Anglia); and a PhD in Legal Theory (Birkbeck, University of London).

Daniel’s work has been published in leading journals, including The Modern Law Review; Law and Critique; Transnational Legal Theory; Social and Legal Studies; and Law, Culture and the Humanities. He is co-editor with Scott Veitch of Law, Obligation, Community (Routledge, 2018) and co-editor with Tara Mulqueen of Being Social: Law, Ontology, Politics (Counterpress, 2015). Daniel has held visiting positions at the University of Glasgow and the Birkbeck Institute for the Humanities, University of London. He serves on the editorial boards of the journals Law and Critique and Law & Literature, at the latter he is the book reviews editor. Daniel is also one of the editors of the Critical Legal Thinking Blog. Before joining Warwick, he was Assistant Professor of Law at the University of Hong Kong.

Publications

Matthews, Daniel, 2023. Law and aesthetics in the Anthropocene : from the rights of nature to the aesthesis of obligations. Law, Culture and the Humanities, 19 (2), pp. 227-247
'Matthews, Daniel, 'Birrell, Kathleen, 'Lindgren, Tim, 2022. 'Sovereignty in the anthropocene. Griffith Law Review, pp. 1-17
'Matthews, Daniel, 2021. 'Reframing sovereignty for the anthropocene. Transnational Legal Theory, 12 (1), pp. 44-77
Fraser, Alistair, Matthews, Daniel, 2021. Towards a criminology of atmospheres : law, affect and the codes of the street. Criminology & Criminal Justice, 21 (4), pp. 455-471
'Birrell, Kathleen, 'Matthews, Daniel, 2020. 'Laws for the Anthropocene : orientations, encounters, imaginaries. Law and Critique, 31 (3), pp. 233-238
'Birrell, Kathleen, 'Matthews, Daniel, 2020. 'Re-storying laws for the Anthropocene : rights, obligations and an ethics of encounter. Law and Critique, 31 (3), pp. 275-292
'Matthews, Daniel, 2019. 'From global to Anthropocenic assemblages : re?thinking territory, authority and rights in the new climatic regime. The Modern Law Review, 82 (4), pp. 665-691
'Matthews, Daniel, 2017. 'Plasticity, jurisdiction, and the interruption of sovereignty : a response to Catherine Malabou via Jos? Saramago's Seeing. Law & Literature, 29 (2), pp. 345-366
'Matthews, Daniel, 2017. 'From jurisdiction to juriswriting : at the expressive limits of the law. Law, Culture and the Humanities, 13 (3), pp. 425-445
'Matthews, Daniel, 2017. 'Narrative, space and atmosphere : a nomospheric inquiry into Hong Kong?s pro-democracy ?Umbrella Movement?. Social & Legal Studies, 26 (1), pp. 25-46
'Matthews, Daniel, 'Wan, Marco, 2017. 'Introduction : legal marginalia. Law and Humanities, 11 (1), pp. 3-6
'Matthews, Daniel, 'Veitch, Scott, 2016. 'The limits of critique and the forces of law. Law and Critique, 27 (3), pp. 349-361
'Matthews, Daniel, 2012. 'The question of political responsibility and the foundation of the National Transitional Council for Libya. Law and Critique, 23 (3), pp. 237-252

Matthews, Daniel, 2024. The aesthetics of sovereignty. Crawley, Karen; Giddens, Thomas; Peters, Timothy D. (eds.), Routledge Handbook of Cultural Legal Studies, Abingdon, Oxon, Routledge
Matthews, Daniel, 2023. We, earthbound people : constituent power in entangled times. In Burdon, Peter D.; Martel, James (eds.), The Routledge Handbook of Law and the Anthropocene, Abingdon: Routledge, pp. 65-79
'Matthews, Daniel, 2021. 'Earthbound : the aesthetics of sovereignty in the Anthropocene.

'Matthews, Daniel, 2016. 'Review of Robert P. Burns : Kafka?s Law : The Trial and American Criminal Justice. International Journal for the Semiotics of Law - Revue internationale de Sémiotique juridique, Springer, pp. 237-241
'Matthews, Daniel, 2014. 'Review of Competing Sovereignties. Law, Culture and the Humanities, Sage, pp. 310-312
'Matthews, Daniel, 2013. 'Review of Jacques de Ville, Jacques Derrida : Law as Absolute Hospitality. Derrida Today, Edinburgh University Press, pp. 260-265
'Matthews, Daniel, 2012. 'Review of Human Rights and Constituent Power : Without Model or Warranty. Law, Culture and the Humanities, Sage, pp. 378-380
'Matthews, Daniel, 'Tzanakopoulos, Dimitrios, 2012. 'Theory engaged : perspectives of discontent. Law and Critique, Springer, pp. 183-184

Teaching Media

Interview with William MacNeil, for Edinburgh University Press
https://euppublishingblog.com/2022/02/21/video-a-conversation-with-daniel-matthews-and-william-macneil/

Discussion on the Countersign podcast: "Earthbound in the Anthropocene"
https://countersignisapodcast.com/podcasts/earthbound-in-the-anthropocene/

Discussion on the Institute for International Law and the Humanities (University of Melbourne) podcast: "Sovereignty in the Anthropocene"
https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/sovereignty-in-the-anthropocene-with-daniel/id1530129561?i=1000537919949

Research Supervision

I welcome enquiries from prospective PhD supervisees. However, please ensure that you have a research proposal which corresponds with the University of Warwick School of Law requirements.

Daniel welcomes research students in the areas of critical legal theory; constitutional law and theory; theories of sovereignty and political community; law and humanities (law and literature, law and film, law and and aesthetics); law and the Anthropocene; climate change law; law and geography.