Role
Emma is an Associate Professor in Law with a research specialism in applied public inquiry law and procedure. Her work focuses on improving understanding of the role and function of public inquiries and on analysing and disseminating best practice to inform and improve future inquiry procedure and practice. Emma was a recipient of the Vice-Chancellor's Award for Excellence in Practice 2022 for her work in this field. She is co-author of the Practical Guide to Public Inquiries, a comprehensive resource offering practical guidance for those setting up, running, and participating in public inquiries. Her PhD thesis examined political and legal influence on the form and nature of post-2005 public inquiries. She is a member of the NLS Centre for Rights and Justice and the Centre for Advocacy.
In her teaching role, Emma leads curriculum development and course design for vocational and practitioner courses, with a focus on bridging the gap between legal academia and practice. She collaborates closely with leading solicitors, barristers, and members of the judiciary to enhance curriculum design, contribute to academic and practitioner publications, and engage in practice-focused research projects. Emma is a member of the Nottingham Trent University Academic Board, the Nottingham Law School Relationship Manager for the Visiting and Honorary Professors Faculty, and a member of the Nottingham Law School Employers' Advisory Board. She teaches civil litigation, dispute resolution, negotiation, advocacy, research, cognitive interviewing, professional legal practice, and professional written and oral skills on the LLB and practitioner LLM courses.
Career overview
Prior to joining Nottingham Law School, Emma spent 12 years as a solicitor in commercial practice in the fields of public inquiries, commercial litigation, and environmental law. Her work included working on the Saville Inquiry into the events of Bloody Sunday and heading up a team of specialist civil environmental lawyers dealing with multimillion pound disputes.
During her time at Nottingham Law School, Emma has taught on the LLB, GDL, LPC, BPTC and practitioner LLM programmes. She was a reviewer and assessor for the SRA's innovative Work Based Learning pilot, a scheme that enabled LPC graduates to qualify as solicitors outside the training contract regime.
Emma works with a team of lawyers dedicated to maintaining links with practice and practitioners, which ensures that Nottingham Law School programmes are constantly developed and enhanced to reflect current best practice.
Research areas
Emma's research areas are:
- Applied public law and procedure
- Improving public inquiry law and practice
- Improving understanding of the role and function of public inquiries
Emma’s recent public inquiry research projects include examining:
- improving engagement with vulnerable participants,
- reforming the warning letter process,
- introducing an embedded evaluation processes to support inquiry teams to reflect on, and continuously improve, inquiry procedures while the inquiry progresses, and
- addressing the cost, duration, and effectiveness of public inquiries more widely.
External activity
Emma is a fellow of the Higher Education Academy. Emma was a member of the JUSTICE working party ‘When Things Go Wrong’. It considered and made recommendations to reform institutional responses to deaths or other serious incidents where a “systemic pattern of failure” is evident, in particular looking at inquests and public inquiries. A copy of the report can be found here.
Publications
IRETON, E., 2025. Forensic, policy, and truth-telling inquiries and UK public inquiry reform. Nottingham: Nottingham Trent University.
IRETON, E., 2025. Reforming the statutory inquiry warning letter process. Nottingham: Nottingham Trent University.
IRETON, E., 2024. Public inquiries under scrutiny: learning lessons from past inquiries and enhancing public trust. Solicitors Journal. ISSN 0038-1047
IRETON, E. and RATCLIFFE, C., 2024. A case study on public inquiry engagement with vulnerable witnesses and on putting participants at the heart of the public inquiry process: insights from the Muckamore Abbey Hospital Inquiry. Northern Ireland Legal Quarterly, 75 (AD1), pp. 35-66. ISSN 0029-3105
IRETON, E., 2023. COVID inquiry: how it works, and when we will know if it is successful. The Conversation. ISSN 2044-5032
IRETON, E., 2023. Public inquiries: irreconcilable interests and the importance of managing expectations. Journal of Social Welfare and Family Law, 45 (3), pp. 212-233. ISSN 0964-9069
MITCHELL, I., WATKIN JONES, P., JONES, S. and IRETON, E., 2020. The practical guide to public inquiries. Oxford: Hart Publishing. ISBN 9781509928330
IRETON, E., 2018. How public is a public inquiry? Public Law (April), pp. 277-298. ISSN 0033-3565
IRETON, E., 2017. The Grenfell Tower public inquiry: managing expectations. Solicitors Journal. ISSN 0038-1047
IRETON, E., 2016. The ministerial power to set up a public inquiry: issues of transparency and accountability. Northern Ireland Legal Quarterly NILQ 67(2): 209–29
IRETON, E., 2016. Bowing to public pressure: the child abuse inquiry. The Conversation.
IRETON, E., 2015. Waiting for Chilcot: are threats from families and politicians really the answer? The Conversation.
IRETON, E., 2014. The Inquiries Act 2005 – fit for purpose? London: Local Government Lawyer
IRETON, E., 2014. The Inquiries Act 2005 – fit for purpose? The Law Society Gazette ISSN 1355-7971
Emma’s research and teaching strongly align with United Nations Sustainable Development Goals of Good Health and Wellbeing; Quality Teaching; Reduced Inequalities; and Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions.



