76007 International Human Rights Law
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Credit points: 6 cp
Result type: Grade and marks
Requisite(s): ( 70616 Australian Constitutional Law OR ((94 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C04236 Juris Doctor OR 142 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C04250 Juris Doctor Master of Business Administration OR 94 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C04363 Juris Doctor Master of Intellectual Property OR 94 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C04364 Juris Doctor Graduate Certificate Trade Mark Law and Practice) AND 70106c Principles of Public International Law AND 70107c Principles of Company Law) OR (94 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C04320 Juris Doctor Graduate Certificate Professional Legal Practice AND 70106 Principles of Public International Law))
The lower case 'c' after the subject code indicates that the subject is a corequisite. See definitions for details.
These requisites may not apply to students in certain courses.
There are course requisites for this subject. See access conditions.
Anti-requisite(s): 78151 Human Rights Law AND 78182 Human Rights Law
Description
International human rights law, a body of law designed to oversee the treatment of individuals and groups by the State machinery, formalises the principles of freedom, justice, equality and human dignity that govern sociopolitical relations. As a legal discipline, it is relevant not only to societies with oppressive regimes but also to those with more sophisticated, democratic institutions, and has significant implications for international relations and global security. International human rights law imposes obligations on the State, rendering it accountable internationally for the treatment of persons both at the hands of government institutions and officials and through the acts of private persons.
This subject introduces students to the fundamental principles of international human rights law, primarily through an analysis of international instruments and their application, and the international and regional mechanisms for its promotion, supervision and enforcement. In addition, students examine the philosophical, political and social dimensions of human rights through case studies of current human rights problems.
Subject learning objectives (SLOs)
Upon successful completion of this subject students should be able to:
| 1. | Interpret and evaluate the principles, institutions and mechanisms of international human rights law. |
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| 2. | Analyse human rights problems by identifying and applying legal principles to factual situations and formulating reasoned legal arguments. |
| 3. | Critically evaluate the philosophical, historical, political and social issues relevant to the theoretical and practical aspects of international human rights law. |
| 4. | Construct and communicate rigorous and persuasive written and oral arguments supported by textual readings and contextual analyses. |
Course intended learning outcomes (CILOs)
This subject also contributes specifically to the development of the following graduate attributes which reflect the course intended learning outcomes:
- Legal Knowledge
A coherent understanding of fundamental areas of legal knowledge including:
a. The Australian colonial and post-colonial legal system, international and comparative contexts, theoretical and technical knowledge;
b. The broader contexts within which legal issues arise and the law operates including cultural awareness, social justice and policy;
c. The impact of Anglo-Australian laws on Indigenous peoples, including their historical origins in the process of colonisation and ongoing impact; and
d. The principles and values of justice and ethical practices in lawyers' roles. (LAW.1.1) - Critical Analysis and Evaluation
A capacity to think critically, strategically and creatively, including the ability to:
a. Identify and articulate legal issues in context, including the skill of critical reading and writing;
b. Apply reasoning and research to generate appropriate responses;
c. Engage in critical analysis and make a reasoned choice amongst alternatives; and
d. Think creatively in approaching legal issues and generating appropriate responses. (LAW.3.1) - Research skills
Well-developed cognitive and practical skills necessary to identify, research, evaluate and synthesise relevant factual, legal and policy issues. (LAW.4.1) - Communication
Effective and appropriate communication skills including:
a. Highly effective use of the English language to convey legal ideas and views to different and diverse audiences and environments;
b. An ability to communicate to inform, analyse, report and persuade;
c. An ability to strategically select an appropriate medium and message;
d. An ability to assess how messages are received and alter communication strategies accordingly; and
e. An ability to be responsive and adaptive to the perspectives of collaborators, clients, counter parties and others. (LAW.5.1)
Teaching and learning strategies
Strategy 1: Preparing for class activity
Students are expected to complete the prescribed reading from the textbook noted in the Program below prior to each class. The prescribed reading constitutes the minimum, essential preparatory work to enable a thorough understanding of the topics covered in the subject and to facilitate participation in class discussion. It is advisable that students make note of any aspects of the reading materials they do not fully understand or which they would like explained further, so that the issues may be raised and examined in class. For some topics, discussion questions or case studies of human rights will be posted on Canvas, which students are asked to read, research and prepare responses to in anticipation of the small-group discussion activity in the following class. Students may also use the Discussion Board on Canvas to ask questions or raise matters of interest, which can then be taken up by other students as well as the lecturer.
Strategy 2: Engaging in seminars and collaborating in group discussions
The interactive format of the seminars assists students to consolidate and develop the knowledge acquired through the pre-class reading. Additionally, the classroom discussion encourages and develops students’ capacity for critical thinking, evaluation and the formulation of oral arguments. Each seminar is designed to include both a topical discussion and a small-group activity. The topical discussion revolves around the readings from the prescribed text, and involves an examination of the themes and issues arising from those readings, in addition to further relevant material introduced by the lecturer. The seminar is intended to function according to the Socratic method, with student interaction facilitating argumentative dialogue. The small-group activity involves students engaging with each other in small groups, focusing on either a discursive theme or a case study of a human rights problem, which they then report back to the class on. The activity extends the knowledge gained from the readings and seminar, and applies it to practical and current issues. Both the seminar and the activity permit students to gauge how successful they have been in their reading, by testing their knowledge against the analytical perspectives introduced by the lecturer and hearing the views of other students. The methods employed by the lecturer in interpreting the primary and secondary sources and applying them to human rights problems serve as a dialogical model for students engaged in the small-group activity. The choice of a contemporary, polemical issue as the subject for each activity also encourages students to share their own knowledge, experiences and viewpoints, and then to interrogate and refine them in light of the discourse.
Strategy 3: Applying research and analytical skills
The Human Rights Advice assessment task (Task 1) requires students to investigate and present written advice on a given human rights problem. It necessitates identification of the legal areas raised by the problem facts, research into the international human rights jurisprudence relevant to those areas, and examination of the how the research material may be used to resolve the problem. The analytical skills employed in the task will be developed through the group problem-solving exercises undertaken in some of the classes. The task focuses on three general learning experiences which are crucial to the skill set of an international human rights lawyer: interpreting a factual scenario and identifying pertinent human rights law issues; accessing and interpreting primary and secondary research materials, principally through online legal databases; and, analysing and applying the research material to the issues, using appropriate methods of reasoning and logically-supported arguments. The factual problem for the task is chosen from current human rights topics, and demonstrates the interplay between the doctrinal understanding of human rights law and its pragmatic application to salient issues of global significance. In a broader sense, the task develops an understanding of the role of international adjudication in responding to human rights violations, and the limitations in judicial enforcement of human rights norms.
Strategy 4: Feedback
Students receive ongoing feedback in seminars from the lecturer as well as their peers. Students should be using class participation as a means to test their understanding of legal principles and their application to various legal contexts. Moreover, the small-group activity and follow-up class discussion serve to refine students’ understanding and approaches to the material, and permit an individual assessment of the progress of their learning. The mid-session assessment task – the Human Rights Advice (Task 1) – is intended to examine and develop skills in research, analysis and writing. At the start of session students are provided with a written guide that suggests the appropriate analytical methods, structure and stylistic elements for this assessment task. Moreover, throughout the seminars the lecturer models critical thinking, textual analysis and the development of logically structured arguments. The written feedback for this task, which includes both specific textual comments on each paper (in accordance with the assessment criteria) and more general comments to the cohort, provides students with the opportunity to reflect upon and develop their ability to identify legal issues from a factual problem, construct an effective argument, write clearly and persuasively and communicate complex concepts. Students further develop these skills in the process of completing the final assessment task – the Take-home Exam (Task 2) – which consolidates their learning over a broader range of subject topics.
Subject Delivery
Teaching will be based on weekly 3-hour seminars. The classes are not repeated or recorded, and recording by students is not permitted.
Content (topics)
- Background to the human rights regime; universality, relativity and indeterminacy of human rights
- International and regional human rights systems
- Human rights law beyond treaties
- Human rights treaties and derogation
- State responsibility and jurisdiction
- Limitations on human rights
- Human rights in private relationships
- Economic and social rights
- Prohibition of discrimination
- Self-determination and minority rights
Assessment
Assessment task 1: Human Rights Advice
| Objective(s): | This task addresses the following subject learning objectives: 1, 2, 3 and 4 This task contributes specifically to the development of the following graduate attributes: LAW.3.1, LAW.4.1 and LAW.5.1 |
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| Weight: | 50% |
| Length: | 2,000 words, excluding footnote references (the Faculty’s 10% leeway applies) |
| Criteria: |
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Assessment task 2: Examination
| Objective(s): | This task addresses the following subject learning objectives: 1, 3 and 4 This task contributes specifically to the development of the following graduate attributes: LAW.1.1, LAW.3.1 and LAW.5.1 |
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| Weight: | 50% |
| Length: | Nominally 2 hours, to be completed within a 3 hour window. The exam will be undertaken remotely. All other formal exam conditions apply. |
| Criteria: |
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Required texts
Olivier De Schutter, International Human Rights Law: Cases, Materials, Commentray 3rd ed. (Cambridge University Press, 2019)
Recommended texts
Philip Alston & Ryan Goodman, International Human Rights: Text and Materials (Oxford University Press 2013)
Peter Bailey, The Human Rights Enterprise in Australia and Internationally (LexisNexis Butterworths, 2009)
Ilias Bantekas and Lutz Oette, International Human Rights Law and Practice (Cambridge University Press, 4th ed., 2024)
Paula Gerber and Melissa Castan (eds), Critical Perspectives on Human Rights Law in Australia (Thomson Reuters, 2021)
Paula Gerber and Melissa Castan (eds), Contemporary Perspectives on Human Rights Law in Australia (Thomson Reuters, 2013)
Stephen Hopgood, The Endtimes of Human Rights (Cornell University Press, 2013)
Mark Janis, Richard Kay and Anthony Bradley, European Human Rights Law: Text and Materials (Oxford University Press, 3rd ed, 2008)
Sarah Joseph, Jenny Schultz & Melissa Castan, The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights: Cases, Materials and Commentary (Oxford University Press, 2nd ed. 2005)
Adam McBeth, Justine Nolan and Simon Rice, The International Law of Human Rights (Oxford University Press, 2nd ed, 2017)
Frederic Megret and Philip Alston, The United Nations and Human Rights: A Critical Appraisal (Oxford University Press, 2nd ed., 2020)
Daniel Moeckli, Sangeeta Shah and Sandesh Sivakumaran, International Human Rights Law (Oxford University Press, 4th ed., 2022)
Samuel Moyne, The Last Utopia: Human Rights in History (The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 2010)
Samuel Moyne, Human Rights and the Uses of History (Verso, 2017)
Angelika Nussberger, The European Court of Human Rights (Oxford University Press, 2020)
Donald Rothwell, Stuart Kaye, et. al., International Law: Cases and materials with Australian perspectives (Cambridge University Press, 3rd ed, 2018)
William A. Schabas, The European Convention on Human Rights: A Commentary (Oxford University Press, 2017)
Rhona Smith, International Human Rights Law (Oxford University Press, 10th ed, 2021)
Rhona Smith, Texts & Materials on International Human Rights (Routledge-Cavendish, 4th ed, 2019)
Other resources
Journals:
Human Rights Quarterly
Human Rights Law Journal
International Journal of Human Rights
European Journal of Human Rights
Netherlands Quarterly of Human Rights
Human Rights Law Review
American Journal of International Law
International and Comparative Law Quarterly
Leiden Journal of International Law
European Journal of International Law
Websites:
United Nations: http://www.un.org
Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR): http://www.ohchr.org
European Court of Human Rights: http://www.echr.coe.int
Australian Treaties Database: http://www.info.dfat.gov.au/treaties
Inter-American Commission on Human Rights: http://www.oas.org/en/iachr/default.asp
African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights: http://www.achpr.org/
Human Rights Watch: http://www.hrw.org/