LAWS 2708

The course provides an introduction to the international law of human rights and to the more specialized protections applicable to refugees, as well as the interrelationship between these bodies of law. The aim of the course is to provide the students with a coherent framework for understanding the instruments and mechanisms through which international law protects the fundamental rights of every human being as well as those of particularly vulnerable groups, such as refugees. In discussing the various facets of the international human rights and refugee protection regimes, emphasis will be given to their conceptual foundations, their enforcement at the international, regional and domestic level, as well as their practical implications and current challenges. Specific attention will be given to the institutional features of the human rights regime, including at the regional level (Organization of American States), the reception of international human rights law into the Canadian legal system, and the relationship of human rights and refugee law to related areas, such as humanitarian law and international criminal law.