Antony Duff, a renowned professor, author and researcher, will be leaving his post at the University of Stirling in Scotland to join the University of MinnesotaâÄôs Law School in the fall of 2010. Duff, a specialist in the philosophy of criminal law, will be coming to the University as a tenured faculty member after 40 years in the philosophy department in Scotland. âÄúHe really is genuinely the worldâÄôs leading philosopher in criminal law,âÄù David Wippman , dean of the Law School, said. âÄúHe will bring an extraordinary strength and depth to the school.âÄù The University asked Duff to join its staff as part of the Law SchoolâÄôs effort to strengthen its influence and quality of staff, Wippman said. Duff said he was interested in spending time at an American law school, and the timing seemed right, so he accepted the offer. Along with teaching, Duff will continue to conduct research in law and philosophy. âÄúOverall I think this will be very exciting,âÄù Duff said. âÄúIt will be a dramatic change, but [Minnesota] seems like a friendly and welcoming place.âÄù Duff completed his undergraduate and graduate work at the University of Oxford and spent a year teaching at the University of Washington in Seattle before moving to the University of Stirling in 1970. On top of teaching, Duff has written six books and a number of articles and essays. He is a founding co-editor of Criminal Law and Philosophy, an academic journal started in 2007. He has been involved in multiple research projects in the United Kingdom, including organizing a recent 3-year study on the function and implications of trials and an ongoing project looking into criminalization that is expected to run through 2012. Duff said he hopes to continue his research and work with the journal even after he moves to the United States, as well as beginning new projects at the University. Bringing Duff to the staff at the University is part of the schoolâÄôs work being funded by a grant from the Robina Foundation, Wippman said. In 2008, the foundation, created by a Law School alumnus, awarded the school a $6 million grant to fund the Program on Law, Public Policy, and Society . The program was created to promote new research, improve and update the schoolâÄôs curriculum and help support students through internships and other opportunities, according to the Law SchoolâÄôs Web site. Although DuffâÄôs legal education and teaching and research experience is primarily in the U.K., he said he doesnâÄôt foresee any problems in coming to the United States. âÄúThe bigger switch for me will be teaching in a law school,âÄù Duff said. âÄúI have been in the philosophy department for so long. It will be interesting to see how the transition goes.âÄù Wippman said in DuffâÄôs field, his international experience will likely be an asset rather than a barrier for the school. Since Duff will be coming to the University as a tenured professor, there is no set time for his work at the University. Duff said he has no ending date in mind, and plans to stay for âÄúa few yearsâÄù at minimum. âÄúThere is still lots of work to do in the future for criminal law,âÄù he said. âÄúThis gives me the chance to do it in an entirely new context.âÄù