Constitutional Review under the UK Human Rights Act
Format:Paperback
Publisher:Cambridge University Press
Published:7th May '09
Currently unavailable, and unfortunately no date known when it will be back
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- Hardback£125.00(9780521761000)
Provides a critical and theoretically informed analysis of the leading case-law on the compatibility of primary legislation with the HRA.
Aileen Kavanagh provides a critical examination of the leading case-law on the compatibility of primary legislation with the HRA, whilst also addressing more theoretical questions concerning judicial deference, proportionality and the compatibility of the HRA with parliamentary sovereignty and the traditional allocation of power between Parliament and the courts.Under the Human Rights Act, British courts are for the first time empowered to review primary legislation for compliance with a codified set of fundamental rights. In this book, Aileen Kavanagh argues that the HRA gives judges strong powers of constitutional review, similar to those exercised by the courts under an entrenched Bill of Rights. The aim of the book is to subject the leading case-law under the HRA to critical scrutiny, whilst remaining sensitive to the deeper constitutional, political and theoretical questions which underpin it. Such questions include the idea of judicial deference, the constitutional status of the HRA, the principle of parliamentary sovereignty and the constitutional division of labour between Parliament and the courts. The book closes with a sustained defence of the legitimacy of constitutional review in a democracy, thus providing a powerful rejoinder to those who are sceptical about judicial power under the HRA.
'This excellent book should be on the required reading list of every human rights syllabus that aims at getting under the skin of the Human Rights Act (HRA), understanding fully where it fits in Britain's system of government and wrestling with the complexities of terminology, interpretation and proper application to which it has given rise. … an indispensable guide to the first 10 years of the HRA, by the finest scholar of the first generation to have cut their academic teeth on the measure.' Professor Conor Gearty, Public Law
'Aileen Kavanagh's book adds to [the] body of scholarship through a particularly skilful analysis of the methodology that underlies judicial decision-making in terms of the HRA. … her work probably qualifies as the most comprehensive of its kind to date. For this admirable feat the author deserves praise.' European Constitutional Law Review
'Constitutional Review under the UK Human Rights Act is a most significant contribution to the understanding of the exercise of the powers conferred on the judiciary in the United Kingdom by the HRA. It is likely to acquire the status of a book that no serious discussion of human rights law in the United Kingdom, or, for that matter, in Australia, can afford to ignore … it is a remarkable achievement.' The Hon Justice Pamela Tate, Australian Journal of Administrative Law
'In this review, I have managed only to touch upon the wealth of legal analysis, historical scholarship, and philosophical argument contained within Kavanagh's impressive book. Suffice it to say that those who would like to learn something - or a bit more - about the status of constitutionalism outside North American borders and who relish sophisticated, balanced philosophical analysis informed by a thorough understanding of the relevant legal practice would be well advised to read this book.' Professor Wil Waluchow, Constitutional Commentary
'Aileen Kavanagh is now firmly established as one of the United Kingdom's foremost constitutional scholars; she has taken a central role in expounding and justifying the practice of constitutional review described in the title of this book, doctrinally, constitutionally and theoretically … [This is] an excellent book - one that is essential reading for anyone who wants to acquire a serious and sophisticated understanding of constitutional review under the Human Rights Act.' Human Rights Law Review
- Winner of SLS Peter Birks Prize for Outstanding Legal Scholarship 2009
ISBN: 9780521682190
Dimensions: 228mm x 151mm x 22mm
Weight: 740g
470 pages