Esmé Shirlow teaches and researches in the fields of public international law, international dispute settlement, and international investment law and arbitration. Esmé is admitted as a Solicitor in the Australian Capital Territory and trained as a civil and commercial mediator in England. She maintains a practice in the field of international law, and has been involved as an advisor to parties to investment treaty claims and in proceedings before the International Court of Justice, and has served as an assistant to a number of investment treaty tribunals. Prior to joining the ANU, she worked in the Australian Government’s Office of International Law.

Esmé completed her PhD as a Dickson Poon Scholar at King's College London, for which she was awarded the King's Elsevier Outstanding PhD Thesis Prize. She completed her LL.M. at the University of Cambridge, where she was awarded - among other prizes - the BRD Clarke Prize for Best Overall Performance in the LL.M. and the Clive Parry Prize for Best Result in International Law, as well as the Whewell Scholarship in International Law. Esmé completed her LL.B.(Hons) and a B.A. at the Australian National University