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Staff Profile

Dr Sara Canduzzi

Lecturer in Law

Background

I joined Newcastle in 2026 as a Lecturer in Law with an expertise in the areas of EU law and constitutional law and theory. I am particularly interested in the study of constitutional and political theory beyond the State, including at the EU, international, and global levels. My research investigates how key concepts and ideas from the State constitutional tradition (such as sovereignty, legitimacy, and authority) translate to the non-State domain. I am also keen to apply general philosophical theories to the study of law beyond the State, and I have recently started to engage with critical legal theory to reflect on how this tradition of legal and political thought has been received in different areas of non-State law.


My teaching at Newcastle focuses on EU law and Constitutional Law, but in the past I have contributed to teaching in a variety of subject, at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels, including Jurisprudence, Public Law, and International Law. I was awarded Advance HE Associate Fellowship in February 2025.


Before joining Newcastle, I worked as an Early Career Fellow in European Union Law at the Edinburgh Law School, University of Edinburgh, where I also completed a PhD at the intersection of EU law and legal and constitutional theory. My doctoral thesis, titled 'Towards a Theory of Constitutional Crisis in the European Union', offers an original account of the nature and evolution of the EU as a constitutional entity through the conceptual lens of crisis. 


Qualifications

PhD in Law (2026) - University of Edinburgh

LLM in Law (2022) - University of Edinburgh

Diploma in Law (2022) - Sant'Anna School of Advanced Studies in Pisa

Laurea Magistrale in Giurisprudenza (2021) - University of Pisa

Research

My research applies concepts and ideas in legal philosophy, political and constitutional theory to the study of legal phenomena, with a focus on law beyond the State. While I am interested in all forms of non-State law, my main expertise lies in the area of EU law. My doctoral research offered an original account of the nature and evolution of the EU as a constitutional polity by developing a theory of constitutional crisis in the EU. I have also worked extensively on the concept of legitimacy beyond the State, and on how normative theories of legitimacy should be constructed when applied to non-State entities.

Teaching

Seminars

  • LAW1220 Constitutional Law
  • LAW1262 The UK and EU Law
Publications