Prof Kim Economides, who will be taking up the position next month, is currently professor of legal ethics at the University of Exeter and was a former head of its School of Law.
He was the founding general editor of international journal Legal Ethics and has held several advisory positions to the British Parliament on legal reform issues.
The Otago centre will carry out research on how New Zealand can improve its judicial system by making it more accessible, affordable and effective, and how courts can best ascertain truth to arrive at a fair and just outcome.
In a statement, Prof Economides said the major attraction of coming to Otago was because he had always seen the country as a "legal laboratory" where new ideas could be implemented.
A good example was the accident compensation scheme, he said.
Law dean Prof Mark Henaghan said Prof Economides would make an excellent addition to the Otago faculty.
