International Human Rights Law

This course introduces the legal frameworks, institutions, and advocacy strategies that underpin the international human rights system. With a practitioner’s lens, students will explore civil, political, economic, social, cultural, and environmental rights through treaties, customary law, and jurisprudence. Emphasis is placed on understanding where and how the law offers avenues for redress, and the evolving role of human rights advocacy in confronting modern challenges, including corporate accountability, gender discrimination, and climate justice.

Students will examine the structure and operation of key international and regional human rights mechanisms, the limits and opportunities of legal enforcement, and the relationship between international human rights law and international humanitarian law. The course integrates doctrinal learning with applied analysis through case studies, reflections, and simulations. Attendance in the first class session is mandatory.