The Cambridge Companion to Human Rights Law

Captures the essence of the multi-layered subject of human rights law in a way that is authoritative, critical and scholarly.

Written in a lively and critical format, this book delves into human rights law in a way that is understandable whilst also penetrating. With contributions by world-class academics, this Companion looks at the contemporary operation of human rights law and provides succinct coverage of the whole subject.Human rights are considered one of the big ideas of the early twenty-first century. This book presents in an authoritative and readable form the variety of platforms on which human rights law is practiced today, reflecting also on the dynamic inter-relationships that exist between these various levels. The collection has a critical edge. The chapters engage with how human rights law has developed in its various subfields, what (if anything) has been achieved and at what cost, in terms of expected or produced unexpected side-effects. The authors pass judgment about the consistency, efficacy and success of human rights law (set against the standards of the field itself or other external goals). Written by world-class academics, this Companion will be essential reading for students and scholars of human rights law.