Dr Laura Davidson
Co-founding Trustee
Laura Davidson is a Barrister with a Ph.D in mental health law and human rights at No.5 Chambers in London (https://www.linkedin.com/in/laura-davidson-01116150/). Her work involves all aspects of healthcare law, but she has particular interest and expertise in mental health, capacity and disability law.
She is also an international development consultant in the fields of public health and justice, and has worked in Africa, South America and Asia. She has been a visiting academic Fellow at the law faculty of the University of Cape Town for a number of years, and regularly conducts research and publishes in legal and other journals. She has co-authored and contributed to three legal books, and is sole editor of The Routledge Handbook of International Development, Mental Health and Wellbeing (2019) (London: Routledge).
Laura's desire to set up a charity dedicated to funding research into the causes of mental illness arose from her frustration that so many sectioned patients she represented in psychiatric hospitals were unresponsive or resistant to current treatments. She believes that research is the key to making a long-term global difference in the lives of those with mental health issues.