Student Profile: Sayid Bnefsi
Email address: sbnefsi@uci.edu
Dual degree you are pursuing: J.D., Ph.D in Philosophy
Expected graduation: 2024
Research interests/agenda: I am a J.D./Ph.D. student at the University of California, Irvine. I am scheduled to defend my dissertation, “Ways to Reform the Law,” in December 2023, and complete the JD program in May 2024.My dissertation is the first step in my interdisciplinary research agenda. It contains three proposals that concretely address major concerns in the philosophy of law: one on achieving greater fairness between unequally wealthy parties in civil litigation by changing how courts award damages, another on imposing tort liability for special cases of risk impositions without requiring the risk to materialize, and the last on justifying differential punishment in criminal law that involves rejecting the merger doctrine.Before the dual-degree program at Irvine, I received my masters in philosophy from Northern Illinois University and my bachelors in philosophy from Berea College. Outside of philosophy and law, I spend my free time playing soccer. I'm also an avid surfer and snowboarder!I have wide-ranging philosophical and legal interests. Philosophy-wise, I'm interested in risk and luck, especially "pure risk" and "moral luck," but also the philosophy of criminal and tort law. Previously, I focused on the philosophy of time, especially the phenomenon of time bias. Law-wise, I'm interested in litigation, civil and criminal procedure, rules of evidence, and remedies, especially equitable relief.
Past Education:
- B.A., Philosophy, Berea College, KY
- M.A., Philosophy, Northern Illinois University, IL
Academic Experiences, Awards and Honors:
- Gilman International Scholarship, U.S. Department of State
- Humane Studies Fellowship, Institute for Humane Studies
- Kavka Foundation Award, UCI Philosophy
Presentations, Publications, Speaking Engagements:
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Forthcoming. Note. 'Compensatory Preliminary Damages' in CUNY Law Review (Winter 2024).
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Forthcoming. Chapter in Ed. Volume. 'Future Bias and Regret' in Prior's Paradigm for The Study of Time.
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2020. Chapter in Ed. Volume. 'Future Bias and Presentism' in The Metaphysics of Time: Themes from Prior
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2019. Chapter in Ed. Volume. 'B-Theory and Time Biases' in Logic and Philosophy of Time: Further Themes from Prior.
What made you interested in pursuing dual degrees?
I participated in Professor Shauhin Talesh’s seminar on interdisciplinarity and the law, and I found that the sociolegal topics being covered were not only highly engaging, but they also contained natural extensions of philosophical reasoning. I decided to pursue dual degrees because I know that my experience as a humanities scholar, and my skills as a thinker and researcher, will only be further enriched by my experience as a law student. Likewise, my experience as a law student will be constructively shaped by my background knowledge as a Ph.D candidate in philosophy. Overall, I expect that the degrees will offer me greater academic and professional opportunities and freedom when brought together.
How has the dual-degree program helped you achieve your goals?
The dual-degree program helped me achieve my goal of setting an interdisciplinary research agenda. It has prepared me to enter not only the academic job market, in either philosophy or law, but also the private market, as a prospective attorney. Both intellectually and practically, the dual-degree program has proven to be an enriching turning point in and effective launching pad of my career.
How you you describe your experience in the dual-degree program?
I would describe the experience as enriching, flexible, and as challenging as it is rewarding.