The Impact of the UK Human Rights Act on Private Law

Leading academics and practitioners examine how the Human Rights Act influences private law cases in theory and practice.

With contributions from a variety of academics and practitioners, this volume assesses the horizontal effect of the Human Rights Act 1998, how it has been analysed and its impact on key legal areas including privacy, defamation, nuisance, property, commercial law and employment.The Human Rights Act 1998 has had a profound effect in numerous private law decisions and has been the subject of extensive academic debate, in particular on the issue of the extent to which it has horizontal effect and its application in disputes between individuals. With contributions from a variety of academics and practitioners, this volume covers and contributes to the academic debate on horizontal effect and considers how theory matches up with case law; the limits of the Act for private law; and its impact on key areas including privacy, defamation, negligence, nuisance, property, commercial law and employment. Together, the book provides a practical critique of the areas discussed, which will be of academic interest to theorists and of practical benefit to lawyers and judges who wish to understand how the academic debates can be brought to bear in particular cases.