1. Human Rights Research

2. International Human Rights Law
treaty-based, amorphous
treaties can be universal, or
regional (e.g., OAS, EU, AU)
topical (e.g., torture, women’s rights)
humanitarian law; international criminal law

3. Challenges of HR research
Lack of commercial publications (case reporters, digests)
Many possible sources of law
Language barriers
Lack of documentation on human rights violations

4. HR research strategies
importance of internet sources
value of secondary sources (electronic or paper)
Define your
topic
country or region
time period
group

5. One approach
Use secondary materials to identify relevant treaty or treaties
Is your country of interest a party?
Any RUDs?
What body “enforces” the treaty?
What documents does the body produce?

6. Alternative approaches
Search law review articles for a recent treatment of your subject
Find a bibliography on your topic
Search library catalogs for books on your topic
Search the web for an NGO that works on your topic

7. Asylum law as context for US human rights work
most likely point of contact with HR law
many sources of information
country reports
news stories
IGO, NGO documents
expert witnesses
foreign laws

8. Example: Convention against Torture
US sources of law:
Federal statute and regulations
Administrative decisions
Case law
Best approach: Immigration law treatise

9. More on CAT research Beyond US sources: CAT Country reports
General comments
States parties’ reports to CAT
CAT jurisprudence (Communications)
Country reports
Other NGO documents
news stories
experts

10. CAT website (part of OHCHR site)

11. OHCHR search functions
basic search works like Google
Treaty Bodies search is useful for some tasks, like finding state party reports
From home page, pick Treaty Bodies
From TB page, pick Treaty Body Document Search

12. OHCHR Charter Bodies search

13. Another tool for HR searching: REFWORLD Advanced Search

14. Country reports

15. Other relevant sources
NGO topical reports
News stories
Foreign laws
Expert witnesses

16. Council of Europe strongest human rights power
ECHR “constitutional court for civil and political rights” in Europe
documentation at HUDOC

20. Inter-American system
developed by OAS
two legal sources
OAS Charter
Am. Convention on Human Rights
two main bodies
Inter-American Commission
Inter-American Court

21. I-A Court jurisprudence

23. IACHR case reports

24. African system African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights
African Court of Human and Peoples' Rights (very new; may end up as the African Court of Justice and Human Rights.)
documentation is scarce

25. African system (con’t)

26. 2012 best source for jurisprudence
WorldLII International Courts & Tribunals Collection