Thesis title

'Preventing the Sale of Looted Antiquities by Non-State Actors: a comparative analysis of International Law and national legislation in the United Kingdom, United States, and the European Union' [provisional]

Supervisors

Dr Tatiana Flessas and Dr Luke McDonagh

Research interests/areas

International law; art law; cultural heritage law; international arbitration; copyright 

Lauren Bursey is a PhD Candidate in Law at LSE. She holds an Honours Bachelor of Arts from the University of Toronto, Trinity College, a Juris Doctor from DePaul University College of Law, and is finishing a LLM in Transnational Arbitration and Dispute Settlement from Sciences Po. Admitted to practice law in the States of Illinois and New York, Lauren previously worked as an attorney at major international law firms in the United States.  

She previously worked as a research assistant to Distinguished Research Professor Patty Gerstenblith, Director of Centre on Art, Museum, and Cultural Heritage Law. She also assisted with drafting and editing the 5th Edition of the treatise Art Law: The Guide for Collectors, Investors, Dealers & Artists (Lerner, Bresler, Wierbicki). Lauren is interested in art and cultural heritage law broadly, and the protection of and trade in antiquities, as well as questions of ownership, post-Holocaust restitution, repatriation, sovereignty, terrorist financing, and anti-money laundering regulations. Lauren helped to develop the course and was a guest lecturer in Law & the Arts at Columbia University. Lauren is also interested in international arbitration, specifically investor-state arbitration, international dispute settlement, and the law of international organizations. To that end, Lauren is completing a graduate legal internship at ICSID (International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes). She also advised the High Seas Alliance at and following the United Nations Intergovernmental Conference on Marine Biodiversity of Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction treaty negotiations on multilateral treaties and ICJ jurisprudence. 

Affiliations / Memberships

State of Illinois Bar  

State of New York Bar 

New York City Bar Association International Law Committee Member 

Lawyers Committee for Cultural Heritage Preservation Advocacy Committee Member

Awards / Scholarships

LSE PhD Studentship 

Order of the Coif 

CALI Excellence for the Future Awards for Best Performance in: Legal Writing; Copyright; Cultural Heritage; U.S. Foreign Relations