Dr Reilly Anne Willis

Dr Reilly Anne Dempsey Willis joined the University of Suffolk in May 2019 as a Lecturer in Law and is now a Senior Lecturer and Course Leader for undergraduate law.  She specialises in exploring the complex relationships between social media and law, specifically relating to gender equality issues, the rights of women and girls, and reproductive rights. 

Prior to academia, Reilly worked extensively as an advocate for women’s rights, both in the charity sector and within the UN system.  A highlight of this work was her work on the successful case of Alyne da Silva Pimentel Teixeira v. Brazil (Committee on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women), the first time the UN system officially recognised maternal mortality as a human rights violation.  Reilly continues to engage in research on strategic litigation to explore its impact and effectiveness.

Dr Willis is also heavily dedicated to pedagogical research and innovation, as evidenced by winning the International Block and Intensive Learning and Teaching Association’s 2025 Excellence in Teaching award.

Reilly’s PhD used innovative empirical methods to evaluate the long-term impact of international Twitter campaigns on domestic women’s rights in seven countries around the world, which has now been published by Bristol University Press: Hashtag Activism and Women’s Rights: are social media campaigns really making laws better for women and girls?  Reilly also holds a Juris Doctor from New York University School of Law where she was an International Law and Human Rights Fellow at the Center for Human Rights and Global Justice, and a Masters in Public Health from Columbia University.