Luke Clements is the Cerebra Professor of Law and Social Justice at the School of Law, Leeds University.
Luke practised as a solicitor between 1981 and 2021 and in that capacity had conduct of a number of cases before the European Commission and Court of Human Rights. In 1996 he was the solicitor who took the first Roma case to reach the Strasbourg Court Buckley v. UK (1996)
Luke’s academic research and litigation experience is primarily concerned with the rights of people who experience social exclusion, including disabled people and their carers.
He has helped draft and promote a number of Parliamentary Bills aimed at improving the rights of people experiencing social exclusion – including Bills that became the Carers (Recognition and Services) Act 1995 and the Carers (Equal Opportunities) Act 2004. In 2013 he was the Special Adviser to the Parliamentary Committee that scrutinised the draft Bill that resulted in the Care Act 2014.
Luke’s Chair in Law is funded by the disabled children’s charity Cerebra and publications emerging from this research collaboration include reports concerning: the accessibility and effectiveness of disabled facilities grants; local authority home to school transport policies; direct payments; social care charging; delay and complaints; and social care policies that discriminate against disabled children, and institutionalise parent-carer blame. The reports can be accessed by clicking here.
Luke is a Patron of the Disability Law Service and a Special Adviser to the Spinal Injuries Association. He has written widely – details of his books and articles can be found on the Publications page.
