Postgraduate Module Descriptor

LAWM671: International Human Rights Law

This module descriptor refers to the 2021/2 academic year.

Module Aims

The aim of the module is to provide you with the opportunity to learn about and critically assess the major substantive and procedural aspects of international human rights law. The approach is practical, case-based, and discursive. The module will enable you to look in more detail at the issues generated by the internationalization, legalization and politics of human rights.  The module will also give you the opportunity to consider contemporary challenges facing the human rights system including the extraterritorial obligations, hierarchy in human rights law, problems of interpretation, accountability mechanisms, the role of non-State actors and the issue of responding to large-scale human rights violations.

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)

This module's assessment will evaluate your achievement of the ILOs listed here - you will see reference to these ILO numbers in the details of the assessment for this module.
On successfully completing the programme you will be able to:
Module-Specific Skills1. demonstrate deep and systematic knowledge and understanding of the nature of human rights in international law;
2. undertake complex critical evaluation of the major contemporary issues in the field of the protection of human rights at the international and the regional levels, using specialist literature and current research;
3. demonstrate deep and critical understanding of the procedural and substantive law of the relevant international bodies responsible for the supervision of States' obligations;
4. critically evaluate the role of the State and non-State actors in international human rights law;
Discipline-Specific Skills5. undertake complex critical evaluation of the place of human rights in international law;
6. demonstrate flexible and innovative capacity to analyse complex legal problems, identify the relative significance of applicable rules and principles, and select appropriate methods for investigating and critically evaluating them;
7. demonstrate detailed and comprehensive knowledge and understanding of legal concepts relevant to human rights and critical awareness of their social and political implications;
Personal and Key Skills8. present, explain and critically evaluate a range of substantive and theoretical arguments through assessments and learning sessions;
9. identify, retrieve and use the full range of available resources efficiently and autonomously; and
10. work independently and effectively, and to manage time efficiently in preparing for scheduled learning activities and assessments.

Module Content

Syllabus Plan

Whilst the module’s precise content may vary from year to year, it is envisaged that the syllabus will cover the following topics in the order indicated:

  • Nature and Development of Human Rights in International Law
  • Global standard–setting
  • Regional standard-setting
  • Legal accountability for Human Rights I – Interpretation
  • Legal accountability for Human Rights II – Human Rights Treaty Bodies  
  • Responses to gross violations – responsibility to protect
  • UN Charter-Based Supervision
  • Emerging Challenges – The Role of Non-State actors
  • Reporting from Treaty Body observation and wrap up

Learning and Teaching

This table provides an overview of how your hours of study for this module are allocated:

Scheduled Learning and Teaching ActivitiesGuided independent studyPlacement / study abroad
362640

...and this table provides a more detailed breakdown of the hours allocated to various study activities:

CategoryHours of study timeDescription
Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities3Three-hour lecture which will introduce the subject matter of the module and will provide the foundation for guided independent study.
Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities3311 x three hour lecturer-led seminars. You will be expected to make at least one presentation during the course of the seminar programme.
Guided independent study80Reading assignments
Guided independent study114Essay and oral presentation preparation: conducting research and writing the finished product (36 hours per item, 108 hours total)
Guided independent study70Preparation for the examination

Online Resources

This module has online resources available via ELE (the Exeter Learning Environment).

Human rights documents and materials: http://www1.umn.edu/humanrts/

UN Documentation: Human Rights: http://research.un.org/en/docs/humanrights

Universal Human Rights Index: http://uhri.ohchr.org/

Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights: http://www.ohchr.org/

European Convention on Human Rights website: http://human-rights-convention.org/

European Court of Human Rights: http://www.echr.coe.int/

Inter-American Court of Human Rights: http://www.corteidh.or.cr/

African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights: http://www.african-court.org/

American Society of International Law Electronic Resource Guide on International Human Rights: http://www.asil.org/erg/?page=ihr

Other Learning Resources

Rosalyn Higgins, Problems & Process: International Law and How We Use It (Clarendon) 1994

Philip Alston and James Crawford (eds.), The Future of UN Human Rights Treaty Monitoring (CUP) 2000

Philip Alston and Mary Robinson (eds), Human Rights and Development: Towards Mutual Reinforcement (OUP) 2005

Andrew Clapham, Human Rights Obligations of Non-State Actors (OUP) 2006

Christian Tomuschat, Human Rights. Between Idealism and Realism (OUP) 2008

Adam McBeth, Justine Nolan, Simon Rice, The International Law of Human Rights (OUP) 2011

Michael Haas, International Human Rights, 2nd ed (Routledge) 2013