Stuart Russell is an international human rights lawyer, legal scholar, and advocate with more than four decades of experience advancing justice and the rule of law. He began his career as a human rights lawyer in Montréal before moving to Australia, where he served as a law professor at Macquarie University in Sydney and later as a judge on the Refugee Review Tribunal. During his tenure, he adjudicated dozens of asylums claims from Afghanistan, granting protection in every case.

Since relocating to France in 2006, Stuart has played a leading role in defending the legal profession worldwide. Since 2014, he has served as Co-Chair of the Monitoring Committee on Attacks on Lawyers of the International Association of People’s Lawyers (IAPL), where he also serves as Editor-in-Chief of the Committee’s multilingual global blog documenting attacks on lawyers. His research and publications have focused extensively on threats to the legal profession, including the persecution of lawyers and judges in Afghanistan. Stuart also serves on the Advisory Panel of the U.S.-based Afghan Women Judges Visual Storytelling Project and is a member of the Nomination Committee for the Edelstam Prize in Sweden, recognizing outstanding contributions to human rights and courage.