Luke Rostill
Faculty officer role(s):
Biography
Luke Rostill is Associate Professor of Property Law in the Oxford Law Faculty and a Fellow and Tutor in Law at Trinity College. He is also an Academic Fellow of the Middle Temple.
Background
Luke read Jurisprudence (Law) at Wadham College, Oxford, winning the Wronker Prize for best overall performance in law finals. He remained at Wadham for the BCL, MPhil, and DPhil. His DPhil, which was funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council, focused on the law of property and was supervised by Professor Ben McFarlane. Before taking up his current role, Luke was a Supernumerary Teaching Fellow in Law at St John's College, Oxford.
Research
Luke’s research interests are mainly in private law, with a particular focus on property rights. Much of his work is doctrinal, but he also has an interest in theoretical and philosophical questions relating to property law and private law more generally. In recent years, Luke’s work has focused primarily on: (1) relativity of title in the common law and the nature of (so-called) “possessory title”; (2) the nature and grounds of ownership in the law; (3) the limits of property rights and conflicts between property rights and the rights, interests, and needs of others; and (4) the legal remedies that may be awarded where property rights are infringed. He is interested in the interaction between property law and other areas of law, incuding human rights law, the law of torts, and unjust enrichment.
Luke's first monograph, Possession, Relative Title, and Ownership in English Law, was published by Oxford University Press in February 2021.
His work has been cited by courts in several jurisdictions, including the Court of Appeal of England and Wales, the Court of Appeal of British Columbia, and the Supreme Court of New South Wales.
Teaching
Luke's teaching interests largely mirror his research interests. He convenes the BCL/MJur Advanced Property and Trusts course and the Land Law teaching group. He also teaches Trusts and Personal Property, and has taught the Law of Torts and Roman Law.
Postgraduate Supervision
Luke has supervised several postgraduate research students working in the fields of property law, trusts law, and property theory, and he is open to undertaking further doctoral supervision in these areas.