Hannah Franz is a PhD candidate and research assistant in the field of Migration Law at the University of Hamburg. During March and April 2024, she will be a visiting researcher at ACMRL. In addition to her research, she is a member of the Immigration Detention Law Clinic in Hamburg, where she provides active support to individuals in immigration detention. She is also a founding member of the German Association for the Rights of People in Immigration Detention.

Hannah’s dissertation topic centres on ‘Access to Justice in the Context of Detention Pending Deportation.’ This subject explores the legal complexities of immigration detention for individuals awaiting deportation, with a focus on procedural concerns. In particular, she aims to assess procedural errors in immigration detention orders. Her research methodology is based on the compilation and analysis of court data, combining legal research with empirical methods. Based on this analysis, Hannah interprets the errors within the framework of the rule of law, international human rights standards, and the provisions of the Return Directive on immigration detention. She is currently formulating reform proposals to improve access to justice for persons affected by immigration detention.

During her time at ACMRL, Hannah intends to explore the theory of access to justice and investigate potential reform ideas in the immigration detention procedure.