About Paz
Paz Avila is a doctoral candidate in the Department of Government at The University of Texas at Austin, under the supervision of Daniel Brinks. A legal scholar and a political scientist, Paz’s research resides at the intersection of Comparative Politics and Public Law, focusing on constitutional legitimacy, institutional weakness, and the rule of law in fragile democracies, with special emphasis on Latin America.
Paz holds an M.A. in Political Science from UT Austin and an LL.M. in Legal Theory from New York University. At NYU, she conducted research under the supervision of Jeremy Waldron. She also holds an LL.M. in Constitutional Law and an LL.B. from universities in Ecuador.
Prior to her doctoral studies, Paz served as a law clerk at the Constitutional Court of Ecuador and as a Visiting Professional at the Inter-American Court of Human Rights in Costa Rica. She was also a Visiting Scholar at Boston College Law School and has lectured at UT Austin and at several universities across Latin America.
AWARDS AND FELLOWSHIPS
Provost Priority Fellowship
Dean's Merit Scholarship
Human Rights Essay AwardAmerican University
Research and Publications
Works in Progress
Constitutional Legitimacy in a Land of Constitutional Change. Under review, presented at:
- APSA Annual Conference, Philadelphia 2024
- International Society of Public Law ICON-S, Madrid 2024
- Graduate Conference on Constitutional Change, UT Austin Law School, 2024
- Junior Law and Politics Research Community, Austin 2023
The Democratic Alternative to the Judicial Review of Constitutional Amendment
Constitutional Identity and Presidential Term Limits in Latin America. Presented at:
- Constitutional Studies Series, UT Austin Law School, Austin 2022
- Global Summit on Constitutionalism, Austin 2021
The Metaphysics of Sovereignty in Kant’s Political Philosophy. Under review.
Peer-Reviewed Articles
The Rights of Indigenous Peoples: Between Diversity and International Human Rights
- In American University International Law Review 28.4 (2013): 943-974 (in Spanish)
Book Reviews
Between Constitutional Change and Constitutional Veneration
- Review of Richard Albert’s book “Constitutional Amendments: Making, Breaking, and Changing Constitutions” in Revista Díkaion, Universidad de la Sabana, Colombia, 2024.
Mapping Constitutional Dismemberment
- Review of Richard Albert’s book “Constitutional Amendments: Making, Breaking, and Changing Constitutions” in National Law School of India Review, 2021.
Books, Co-Editor (in Spanish)
Freedom of Expression: Debates, Scope, and New Challenges
- Avila, M. Paz, et.al. OHCHR and UNESCO, 2011
Criminal Code Proposal: Constitutional Rights in Criminal Law
- Avila, Ramiro and Avila, Paz, et al. Ministry of Justice and Human Rights, 2010
Teaching
I teach courses on comparative constitutional politics and constitutional law, with a strong interest in Latin American politics and the intersection of gender and politics. In the spring of 2025, I will be teaching "Constitutional Principles: Core Texts" at the University of Texas at Austin.
Over the past four years, I have served as a Teaching Assistant at UT Austin, supporting introductory courses in American government, constitutional interpretation, American elections, and U.S. foreign policy, among others. Prior to this, I taught courses on constitutional law and state politics at Universidad San Francisco de Quito in Ecuador.
