About

Libera Università Maria Ss. Assunta (LUMSA) is a highly ranked Italian non public University, mainly located in Rome and Palermo. Lumsa has 1,600 graduate and undergraduate enrolments every year, with a total student population of 6,000 students. Courses of: law, economics, political sciences, languages, communication, psychology, education.

A Center for Studies in Biolaw was established at LUMSA University, from 2003 to 2012, directed by Prof. Laura Palazzani. Since 2013, it became a Research Unit in Biolaw. An Ethics Committee for Scientific Research (CERS), chaired by Prof. Laura Palazzani, was created in 2015, which focuses its attention on both research integrity and research ethics issues.

Role in the project

LUMSA is in charge of drafting the Report on gender and age-related issues associated with the acquisition of informed consent; participation in ethical and legal review of informed consent for minors; in charge of drafting the Report on legal issues concerning informed consent in translational/clinical research and vaccination.

Analysis of existing informed consent in clinical trials; development of a protocol for a standard evaluation of informed consents; devising new strategies aimed at increasing participation of women in clinical trials and fostering the involvement of patients from different cultures, languages and religious backgrounds in clinical trials; development of ICT-based strategies for improving communication between patients and clinicians.

Validation of informed consent processes, guidelines, and questionnaire for minors, pregnant women and for others in vaccines trials.

Prof. Laura Palazzani

Prof. Laura Palazzani is a full professor of Philosophy of Law, Biolaw and Bioethicsat LUMSA University of Roma.

Her main topics of research are: the concept of person; gender issues; biolaw and justice; beginning of life and end of life issues; experimentation on human beings (on women, children, developing countries); biobanks; emerging/converging technologies (ehealth, gene-editing, neurosciences, robotics, AI); enhancement.

Membership: Vicechair of the Italian Committee for Bioethics; member of EGE (EC), IBC (UNESCO); Steering Committee of the Global Suummit, WHO (2016); Italian representative DH-BIO (2014-2017); member of the Ethics Committee of Bambino Gesù Hospital.

Email: palazzani@lumsa.it

Team

FABIO MACIOCE

PhD in Philosofy of Law and General Theory of Law, University Roma La Sapienza. Current professor of Philosophy of Law and Bioethics, Lumsa University, Rome-Palermo; Invited Professor of Philosophy of Law, Pontifical Gregorian University, Rome; Member of Teaching Staff of the PhD School of History and Theory of Law, University Roma Tor Vergata and PhD School of Human Rights, Lumsa University, Palermo. He is also General Secretary of Italian Catholic Lawyer Association, member of CERMEG, Research Centre of Legal Methodology and member of Jacques Maritain Institute, Portogruaro (VE). Within the project he is dedicated to ethical and legal issues about involvement in clinical trials of people coming from different cultural backgrounds.

Email: fmacioce@libero.it

ANGELO RINELLA

Current full professor of Comparative Constitutional Law, University of Rome LUMSA. In 1997, 1999, 2004, 2006 and 2008 was responsible for research units within the PRIN (Research Projects of National Interest) funded by the Italian government. He is a member of scientific associations of Comparative and Constitutional. Law and member of the board of the Association for Comparative Public and European Law (DPCE). He is the author of 10 monographic books, and more than a hundred scientific essays. More recently, his scientific interests have been focused on the legal implications resulting from neuro-cognitive enhancement, food sovereignty and food global system, right to food, legal aspects connected to GMO, constitutions without constitutionalism in authoritarian regimes. He is currently studying issues of comparative constitutional law related to the Islamic courts in Western countries and managing legal issues in clinical trials and vaccination within the project.

Email: rinella@lumsa.it

MARGHERITA DAVERIO

 

Degree in Philosophy at the Catholic University of Milan, has a PhD in History and Theory of European Law in the 2nd University of Rome – Tor Vergata. After the PhD she developed a three years research project on biopolitics and parenthood. She is now a grant researcher at LUMSA University (Rome) within the EU funded research project i-CONSENT on informed consent in clinical research and works in the same university as assistant of Laura Palazzani, full professor of Philosophy of Law. Margherita also supports Laura Palazzani in coordinating the Master in Bioethics in the area of Motherhood and Childhood (held by LUMSA University and Bambino Gesù Paediatric Hospital, Rome) and teaches as Assistant Professor in the Master in Global Bioethics online (held by UNESCO Chair in Bioethics and Human Rights, Rome and Anáhuac University- Faculty of Bioethics, Mexico).

Email:  m.daverio@lumsa.it

FILOMENA CANADÉ 

Administrative Officer

Email: ricerca@lumsa.it

MIRKO D. GARASIC

Visiting Professor in Neuroethics at IMT School for Advanced Studies, Lucca. He holds a PhD in Political Theory, LUISS University, Rome -where he is an Adjunct Professor in Bioethics. Previously, he was a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Edmond J. Safra Center for Ethics at Tel Aviv University, the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and Monash University. He participated in numerous international conferences and he has received various awards and grants. Among other venues, his work has been published in the American Journal of Bioethics, BMC Medical Ethics, Medicine, Health Care, and Philosophy, Topoi and The Hastings Center Report. His first book has been recently discussed by international scholars in the prestigious Journal of Medical Ethics

Email: m.garasic@lumsa.it

PIETRO BRIGANÒ

Communication Officer

Email: p.brigano@lumsa.it

Other Partners