{"componentChunkName":"component---src-templates-person-person-tsx","path":"/person/Eoin-Guilfoyle-2ba275ba-4b59-46b8-9eac-11801b1d7103/","result":{"data":{"person":{"id":"2ba275ba-4b59-46b8-9eac-11801b1d7103","profilePicture":"https://research-information.bris.ac.uk/ws/files/494562919/B6A9E3A9-4C51-402E-8883-C192487E1ECB.jpeg","profileType":"ACADEMIC","title":"Dr","firstName":"Eoin","lastName":"Guilfoyle","addresses":[{"firstLine":"Wills Memorial Building","secondLine":"Queen's Road","thirdLine":"Clifton","fourthLine":null,"fifthLine":null,"postCode":"BS8 1RJ","country":null}],"socialMedia":[],"expertiseTags":[],"biography":"Eoin rejoined Bristol Law School as a Senior Lecturer in Law in 2026, having previously worked in the School as a Teaching Associate in Law between 2019 and 2022. In the intervening period, he held the position of Lecturer in Criminal Law and Criminal Justice at Brunel University of London.

Eoin graduated with a PhD in Law from the University of Limerick in 2019. His doctoral research, funded by the Irish Research Council, examined the use and operation of the Community Service Order in Ireland. He also holds an MSc in Criminology and Criminal Justice from the University of Edinburgh and an LLB in Law from Griffith College Cork.

His research interests lie broadly in criminal law and criminal justice, with a particular emphasis on sentencing. He has conducted research studies on ethnic disparities in sentencing outcomes, the use and effectiveness of community sanctions as alternatives to imprisonment, and enhancing public engagment in the development of sentencing policy. He has also conducted evaluations of whether new technologies can improve the efficiency of criminal trials and enhance access to justice.

Eoin's research has received funding from research councils (ESRC, Irish Research Council), government bodies, and industry. He has published widely in leading peer-reviewed criminology, criminal justice, and law journals and has produced commissioned research reports and academic insight papers for government bodies, NGOs, and industry partners, including for the Irish Probation Service, HM Inspectorate of Probation, the Sentencing Academy, and BGP Global Services Ltd. His research has informed policy and practice in both the United Kingdom and Ireland. He has been invited to present his research to judges, criminal justice agencies, and other policy and professional audiences, and has given expert evidence before the House of Lords Justice and Home Affairs Committee as part of its inquiry into community sentences.","postNominals":"LLB, MA, PhD","websiteLink":null,"email":"eoin.guilfoyle@bristol.ac.uk","telephone":[],"snippet":"Criminal law; criminal justice; sentencing law and practice; community sanctions and measures; public engagement with sentencing policy; emerging technologies in criminal trials.","teaching":"

Eoin is the unit co-ordinator for both Criminology and Evidence Law. He also teaches Criminal Law at undergraduate and postgraduate level.

","researchInterest":"

Eoin's research interests lie broadly in criminal law and criminal justice, with a particular focus on sentencing law and practice, community sanctions, the relationship between criminal justice institutions and the public, and the use of AI in criminal trials. Using doctrinal, empirical, and interdisciplinary methods, he examines how criminal justice institutions can become more effective, fair, and legitimate. His research explores issues including ethnic disparities in sentencing, developing more effective community sanctions as alternatives to imprisonment, enhancing public understanding of and confidence in sentencing, and evaluating whether AI-enabled evidence presentation systems can improve the efficiency of criminal trials and enhance access to justice. Through collaboration with researchers from a range of disciplines, including criminology, statistics, data science, education, and science communication, he seeks to produce rigorous, evidence-informed research that advances academic understanding while informing criminal justice policy and practice.

\n

 

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Recent Funded Projects

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January 2026 - ongoing: Co-Investigator on a collaborative project, conducted in partnership with industry, evaluating whether emerging AI technologies can improve efficiency in criminal courts. Using mock trials, the research examines how AI-enabled evidence presentation systems can reduce delays associated with current manual processes, supporting more timely access to justice. The project is funded by the Brunel Innovation Voucher Scheme and is led by Dr Asress Gikay (Brunel University of London).

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September 2024 - September 2025: Co-Investigator on a commissioned research study evaluating the current use and operation of Integrated Community Service in Ireland. The study was funded by the Irish Probation Service and was led by Dr Louise Kennefick (University of Glasgow).

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August 2022 - August 2025: Co-Investigator on the ESRC-funded project Exploring the Nature of Ethnic Disparities in Sentencing through Causal Inference. It used a novel methodological framework to examine whether there are ethnic disparities in sentencing outcomes in England and Wales and to identify the likely sources of any disparities observed. The project was led by Professor Jose Pina-Sánchez (University of Leeds), with Dr Sara Geneletti (LSE) and Dr Ana Morales-Gómez (University of Edinburgh) also as Co-Investigators.

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Full List of Funded Projects

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2026: Evaluating the Legal, Technical, and Ethical Impacts of AI-Assisted Evidence Presentation. Innovation Voucher Scheme.

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2024 - 2025: Review of Integrated Community Service, Irish Probation Service.

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2022 – 2024: Exploring the Nature of Ethnic Disparities in Sentencing through Causal Inference, Economic and Social Research Council Secondary Data Analysis Initiative.

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2021: Evidence Review of Community Service, Irish Probation Service.

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2020: A Review of the Community Order, Its Use and Operation and Research Evidence, The Sentencing Academy.

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2015 - 2018: An Examination of the Community Service Order in Ireland, Irish Research Council Government of Ireland PhD Scholarship.

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