Mr Josep Maria Tirapu Sanuy

Josep M. Tirapu-Sanuy is a PhD candidate in Law at the University of Cambridge, specialising in plurinational constitutionalism. Originally from Barcelona, Josep is interested in the phenomenon of national pluralism, that is, the coexistence of various national communities within a single state. By comparing the law and practice of various constitutional systems, he examines what implications national pluralism has for constitutional law. He is especially interested in constitutional conflicts in Spain, Canada, and the United Kingdom, particularly in relation to Catalonia, Quebec, and Scotland.

In his doctoral thesis, Josep develops a theory of the judicial role in the accommodation of national pluralism, comparing different judicial responses to the claims advanced by minority nations. His research also addresses the theory and practice of federalism, secession, and human rights.

Before starting his PhD, Josep completed an MPhil in Law at the University of Oxford, a Master of Research in Political Science, and undergraduate degrees in Law and Political Science at Universitat Pompeu Fabra. He was a visiting PhD student at the University of Edinburgh (2024) and at the Université du Québec à Montréal (2026). He has taught Constitutional Law at Jesus College, Cambridge (2024–2025), served as an editor of the Oxford Human Rights Hub blog (2023–2024), and worked as a research assistant at the Bonavero Institute of Human Rights (2023).

Josep speaks Catalan, English, Spanish, and a bit of French.