Dr Jae Sundaram

Research Officer, Law School

LLB (India), LLM in Maritime Law (Southampton), Advocate (India), Solicitor of England & Wales, PG Cert (HE), FHEA

Dr Jae Sundaram is a Reader in Trade & Maritime law. A dual-qualified ‘trade and maritime’ lawyer, Jae practised for several years before moving to academia. He holds a masters’ degree in maritime law (University of Southampton) and taught at the University of Plymouth before joining the University of Buckingham in January 2007. Jae has considerable experience teaching across a range of subject areas to both undergraduates and postgraduates. Jae is the course coordinator for International Trade and Maritime Law, Law of World Trade, and Financial Crime and Anti-Money Laundering Laws, on the LLM programme. On the full-time and part-time LLB programmes, he is the module leader for Commercial Law besides teaching Law of Torts in the full-time LLB Programme.

Jae has also held visiting academic positions for several years in Maritime Law in Cyprus (CIIM), and in World Trade Law at the University of Rennes, France (Erasmus Professor). Jae’s research interests focus on the Maritime Law, International Trade/ World Trade, Conflict of Laws, Access to Medicines and TRIPS Agreement, and International Law relating to the proportionality in the use of weaponry in modern conflicts. His monograph on Pharmaceutical Patent Protection and World Trade Law: The Unresolved Problems of Access to Medicines, published in 2018 is the culmination of over 5 years’ research into the problems faced in developing countries across the globe in accessing life-saving medicines, brought about by the introduction of extended pharmaceutical patent protection through the WTO. His PhD work also focuses on Access to Medicines in the developing countries and TRIPS Agreement

Jae’s textbook on world trade law, WTO Law and Policy: A Political Economy Approach published in April 2022, is the first by a British author on the subject of world trade law, and also the first to be sole authored. His co-authored whitepaper, A Model Commonwealth Free Trade Agreement presented on 25 October 2022 in London can be accessed here, and his blogpost on the Atlantic Declaration can be accessed here.

Jae is currently co-authoring a textbook on private international law, which his due for publication in 2024. His publications can be found here.

His forth coming publications include an encyclopaedia entry, and Regional Trade Agreements and the WTO Dispute Settlement System.

Select Publications

Whitepaper

• “A Model Commonwealth Free Trade Agreement,” (co-authored with Dr David Collins) Institute for Free Trade (2022).

Books

• “WTO Law and Policy: A Political Economy Approach,” (Routledge 2022).
• “Pharmaceutical Patent Protection and World Trade Law: The Unresolved Problems of Access to Medicines” (Routledge 2018).
• “Marine Insurance” (Editor/ Contributing Editor) (Institute of Chartered Shipbrokers 2017).
• “International Trade Law Statutes and Conventions 2019-2021” (co-authored with Prof Indira Carr) (Routledge 2021).
• “International Trade Law Statutes and Conventions 2016-2018” (co-authored with Prof Indira Carr) (Routledge 2016).

Major Articles

• “Impasse at the WTO Dispute Settlement Body: The Slow Demise of Multilateralism?” (co-authored with Ayodele S. Owolabi) Trade, Law and Development Vol XIV No 2 (2022) 127-156.
• “TRIPS Waiver and the Failure of Multilateralism” Baltic Rim Economies Vol 4 (2022).
• ‘Combat Drones: Hive, Swarms, and Autonomous Action?’ (co-authored with Dr Francis Grimal). Journal of Conflict & Security Law 23 (1) (2018) 105-135.
• “The Incremental Militarisation of Outer Space: A Threshold Analysis” (co-authored with Dr Francis Grimal). Chinese Journal of International Law 17 (2) (2018) 45-72.
• “Cyberwarfare and Autonomous Self-Defence” (co-authored with Dr Francis Grimal) Journal of Use of Force and International Law 4 (2) (2017) 312-343.
• “Offshore Oil Pollution Damage: In Pursuit of a Uniform International Civil Liability Regime,” The Denning Law Journal, Vol 28 (2016) 66-108.
• “Access to Medicines and the TRIPS Agreement: What Next for Sub-Saharan Africa?” Information & Communications Technology Law Vol. 24, Issue 3 (2015) 242-261.
• “Analysis of TRIPS Agreement and the Justification of International IP Rights Protection in the WTO’s Multilateral Trading System, With Particular Reference to Pharmaceutical Patents,” Information & Communications Technology Law Vol. 24, Issue 2 (2015) 121-163.
• “Brazil’s Implementation of TRIPS Flexibilities: Ambitious Missions, Early Implementation, and the Plans for Reform,” Information and Communication Technology Law Vol. 23, Issue 2 (2014) 1-36.
• “India’s Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights Compliant Pharmaceutical Patent Laws: What Lessons for India and other Developing Countries?” Information and Communication Technology Law Vol. 23, Issue 1 (2014) 1-30.

Blog Posts

• Atlantic Declaration: Does it Go the Distance? Politeia (9 June 2023)

Book Reviews

• Review of John Hatchard, Combating Money Laundering in Africa: Dealing with the Problems of PEPs (Edward Elgar Publishers, 2020), Journal of Contemporary African Studies Vol 42 No 1 (2024) 120-123.
• Review of Heather Harrison Dinniss, Cyber Warfare and the Laws of War (Cambridge University Press, 2012), Journal of Use of Force and International Law 4 (2) (2017) 1-11.
• Review of Brenda Pamela May, The Legal Duel: The TRIPS Agreement and Drug Access Issues (Peter Lang GmbH, 2013), The Denning Law Journal, Vol. 27 (2015) 345-349.

Case Notes

• “Does the Judgment of the CJEU in Gazprom Bring About Clarity on the Grant of Anti-Suit Injunctions under the Brussels I Regulation?” The Denning Law Journal, Vol 27 (2015) 303-322.
• “Is the Court of Appeal Decision in the Achilleas Good Law?” The Denning Law Journal Vol. 20 (2008) 187-195.

Conference Papers

• “Blowouts, Clean-ups and Claims: Time to Establish an International Offshore Oil Spill Liability Regulation” UBCEES conference on ‘Marine Life, Oil Spills, Shipping & Piracy: Contemporary Maritime Issues in Offshore Energy Exploitation’ University of Buckingham, 28 October 2015.
• “Maritime Disasters & Marine Pollution” Keynote Speaker in the event hosted by Student Law Society, University of Buckingham, 19 April 2012.
• “Hydrocarbon Reserves and Shipping: Riches for Cyprus?” Keynote Speaker in the Law Symposium hosted by Christodoulos G. Vassiliades & Co LLC, Nicosia, Cyprus, 20 February 2012.
• “Law of the Sea and Exploitation of Seabed Energy Resources” Conference on ‘Innovative Leadership in Challenging Times’, Event Hosted by UBAA, University of Buckingham, 25 April 2009.

Other Publications

• “Paperless Trading in Shipping Practice” (Maritime Legal 2000)

Interests outside of Academia

Jae is a fully qualified Tai Chi instructor, and an avid practitioner of traditional Yang Style Tai Chi, Qigong, and Hatha Yoga in his spare time.