Associate Professor Nadirsyah Hosen is internationally recognised for his expertise in Shari’a and Indonesian law. He serves as Deputy Director of the Centre for Indonesian Law, Islam and Society (CILIS) at Melbourne Law School, where he has worked since June 2024. He is also an Adjunct Professor at the Faculty of Law, Universitas Hasanuddin, Indonesia. Prior to joining Melbourne Law School, he held academic positions at the University of Queensland (2 years), the University of Wollongong (8 years), and Monash University (9 years).

He holds two PhD degrees: one in Islamic Law from the National University of Singapore and another in Public Law from the University of Wollongong. Over more than two decades, he has produced more than 70 publications—including books, edited volumes, journal articles, book chapters and reviews—demonstrating both productivity and sustained academic leadership. His work regularly appears with leading publishers and in top-ranked journals. He also serves on the editorial boards of two prominent legal journals: the Asian Journal of Comparative Law (Cambridge University Press) and the Australian Journal of Asian Law (The University of Melbourne).

Professor Hosen has made significant contributions to debates on Indonesian legal reform across four key areas: constitutionalism, politics, human rights, and anti-corruption. A committed advocate of the rule of law and good governance, his research brings together legal analysis with historico-cultural, socio-cultural and political perspectives. His scholarship in Shari’a law began with influential publications on fatwas in Indonesian and Australian contexts; he has since expanded this work to examine Islam in modern states, law and religion, and the reform of Islamic jurisprudence. In his frequent lectures at Indonesian universities and pesantrens, he emphasises the need to revisit and renew traditional religious interpretations to cultivate a progressive and contemporary understanding of Islam.

He is the author of several seminal works on Indonesian law, including Human Rights, Politics and Corruption in Indonesia: A Critical Reflection on the Post-Soeharto Era (Republic of Letters Publishing, 2010); Shari’a and Constitutional Reform in Indonesia (ISEAS, 2007); and, with Joseph Liow, the four-volume Islam in Southeast Asia (Routledge, 2010). He also co-authored Modern Perspectives on Islamic Law (Edward Elgar, 2013 and 2015) with Ann Black and Hossein Esmaeili. His most recent edited volume, the Research Handbook on Islamic Law and Society (Edward Elgar), brings together 18 chapters covering around 22 jurisdictions, reflecting his extensive global scholarly network.

Alongside his English-language academic works, he has authored several best-selling books in Bahasa Indonesia, including Tafsir al-Qur’an di Medsos, Islam Yes, Khilafah No (2 vols), Saring Sebelum Sharing, and Ngaji Fikih. Widely known in Indonesian communities as “Gus Nadir,” he is regarded as a respected Muslim scholar and spiritual figure within Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), the country’s largest Islamic organisation with more than 60 million members. His influence also extends through social media, with more than 450,000 followers on Twitter/X

reflecting the broad public reach of his scholarship and thought leadership.

He has an ARC Discovery Grant (DP230102942: 'Obstacles to Contract Enforcement in Indonesia' $392,482 (2023-2025)) with Prof Tim Lindsey and Assoc Prof Jeremy Kingsley.

He teaches:

LAWS50024 Principles of Public Law

LAWS50028 Constitutional Law

LAWS50039 Legal Research

LAWS90344/LAWS90355 Islamic Law and Society

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Nadirsyah Hosen

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Melbourne Law School

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