Dr Gus Bussmann

I am a Legal Advisor previously sponsored by The Law Society of England and Wales and benefitted from the Government Authorised Scheme to share and acquire knowledge, experience and best practices with practitioners from around the world; 

In my career in Law Firms I led research and reports in human rights issues involving migrants and asylum seekers. My main responsibilities included research and preparation of reports on human rights and international law; sexual orientation, gender identity and sexuality; race and ethnicity; cultural practices and comparative/public international law; 

I have a Ph.D. in Law, in a 4 year full time programme in Human Rights and Democracy. 

I have also acted as a Deputy Head of Policy for Pride in London, where I led on policy development for domestic issues spanning every nation of the UK and international issues affecting LGBT+ people globally. 

I have been an academic visitor at Birkbeck University of London in the Law department and in the Political Theory department between April 2017 and December 2018. I was benefited from the Government Authorised Scheme as a part-time worker; 

I was a visiting student at Kings College of London in 2018. I attended Dr Robert Wintemute classes and seminars in Equality Law and Non-Discrimination Law; 

I was part of the first Summer School of the Grotius Centre for International Legal Studies of Leiden Law School. My scholarship to attend the Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity in International Law Summer Course was supported by Leiden University the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; 

I am a member of the Brazilian Bar Association, qualified as a Lawyer, since 2012. Also, a member of the Sexual Diversity and Gender Commission since its foundation in 2015 until 2019; 

I have previously acted as a Legal Advisor for the Dignidade Group, who works with the protection of vulnerable LGBTI+ people in Latin America. The NGO is partnered with ILGA, UNaids and several other legal bodies in Latin America. With Dignidade Group I presented amicus curiae petitions to the Supreme Court in Brazil and engaged in activism and advocacy; The amicus curiae I presented as part of the legal case pleading to criminalize homophobia in the country was quoted by the presiding judge and mentioned in the final decision that effectively criminalized homophobia in the country. 

I am a Master of Laws in Human Rights and Democracy since 2015. My dissertation, namely “Victims of Atrocities and International Law: Between Universalism and the Naked Life” was approved with honours and published as a book in 2017; 

I am a member of the research group “Constitutionalism and Democracy” since 2013, where I engage in events, discussions and publications regarding constitutional law, human rights law and humanitarian law; in this environment I also prepared petitions to be presented in the Inter-American Court of Human Rights in relation to violations of human rights of people in Latin America. 

I worked for 05 years as a University Coach to participate in the ICC Moot Court Competition in the Hague, Netherlands and in New York, United States of America. My role as a lecturer of International Law and Human Rights Law was executed with trainings to prepare the students for the competition that took place in Leiden University and in the International Criminal Court. During these years I attended hearings and wrote reviews about the trials in the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia and in the Special Court for Sierra Leone (which I also analyse in the second chapter of the afore mentioned book); 

I also have experience as a Trial Monitor for the American Bar Association in human rights cases in Latin America. My publications include: