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International Human Rights

Current Offerings

International Human Rights (5010): This comprehensive class is designed to enhance understanding of both the theoretical foundations and practical application of international human rights law. It is structured to provide an in-depth exploration that combines academic theory with the realities of implementing human rights law on a global scale. The first segment of the course is dedicated to the fundamentals of human rights law. This includes an examination of the international human rights movement and the theory and origins of the international law of human rights. Students will study a range of UN treaties covering civil and political rights, economic, social, and cultural rights, as well as conventions against gender and racial discrimination, children's rights, and the prohibition of torture. The course will consider both the substantive law and the strategies for its implementation. It will critically analyze the UN institutional mechanisms for promoting human rights implementation, exploring both the root causes and the varied outcomes of these efforts--where the system has failed and where it has succeeded. Transitioning into the second half, the seminar will focus on the populations affected by international human rights law, moving from theory to the examination of current situations. This shift is aimed at applying the principles learned to contemporary issues, thus providing a comprehensive understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of the international human rights regime. By the end of this course, students will have developed a robust understanding of the concepts, mechanisms, and challenges of human rights law, and will be equipped with the analytical tools to actively engage in current debates and contribute to the field of human rights law and its implementation. Elements used in grading: Attendance, class participation, written assignments, and final paper. Advanced undergraduate and graduate students may request enrollment by sending a statement of interest to the instructor. Requests will be reviewed on a rolling basis. Undergraduates who wish to enroll in this course must have completed HUMRTS 101 as a prerequisite. This course is cross-listed with Human Rights (HUMRTS 117) and International Policy (INTLPOL 355).

Sections

International Human Rights | LAW 5010 Section 01 Class #1108

  • 3 Units
  • Grading: Law Honors/Pass/Restrd Cr/Fail
  • 2023-2024 Winter
    • 1L: Winter Elective (Open to First-Year JD Students)
  • Exam:
    • In-class Final
  • Learning Outcomes Addressed:
    • LO1 - Substantive and Procedural Law
    • LO2 - Legal Analysis and Reasoning
    • LO6 - Law Governing Lawyers/Ethical Responsibilities
  • Course Category:
    • Comparative Law & International Law

Notes: Cross-listed with Human Rights (HUMRTS 117) and International Policy (INTLPOL 355). This class section has been cancelled!

  • 2023-2024 Winter
    This class section has been cancelled!

International Human Rights | LAW 5010 Section 02 Class #1109

  • 3 Units
  • Grading: Law Honors/Pass/Restrd Cr/Fail
  • 2023-2024 Winter
  • Enrollment Limitations: Consent
    • 1L: Winter Elective (Open to First-Year JD Students)
  • Graduation Requirements:
    • R -Research Requirement for Law Degree
  • Learning Outcomes Addressed:
    • LO1 - Substantive and Procedural Law
    • LO2 - Legal Analysis and Reasoning
    • LO3 - Ability to Conduct Legal Research
    • LO4 - Ability to Communicate Effectively in Writing
    • LO6 - Law Governing Lawyers/Ethical Responsibilities
  • Course Category:
    • Comparative Law & International Law

Notes: This class section has been cancelled!

  • 2023-2024 Winter
    This class section has been cancelled!

Future Offerings

International Human Rights (5010): This comprehensive class is designed to enhance understanding of both the theoretical foundations and practical application of international human rights law. It is structured to provide an in-depth exploration that combines academic theory with the realities of implementing human rights law on a global scale. The first segment of the course is dedicated to the fundamentals of human rights law. This includes an examination of the international human rights movement and the theory and origins of the international law of human rights. Students will study a range of UN treaties covering civil and political rights, economic, social, and cultural rights, as well as conventions against gender and racial discrimination, children's rights, and the prohibition of torture. The course will consider both the substantive law and the strategies for its implementation. It will critically analyze the UN institutional mechanisms for promoting human rights implementation, exploring both the root causes and the varied outcomes of these efforts--where the system has failed and where it has succeeded. Transitioning into the second half, the seminar will focus on the populations affected by international human rights law, moving from theory to the examination of current situations. This shift is aimed at applying the principles learned to contemporary issues, thus providing a comprehensive understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of the international human rights regime. By the end of this course, students will have developed a robust understanding of the concepts, mechanisms, and challenges of human rights law, and will be equipped with the analytical tools to actively engage in current debates and contribute to the field of human rights law and its implementation. Elements used in grading: Attendance, class participation, written assignments, and final paper. Advanced undergraduate and graduate students may request enrollment by sending a statement of interest to the instructor. Requests will be reviewed on a rolling basis. Undergraduates who wish to enroll in this course must have completed HUMRTS 101 as a prerequisite. This course is cross-listed with Human Rights (HUMRTS 117) and International Policy (INTLPOL 355).

Sections

International Human Rights | LAW 5010 Section 01 Class #33787

  • 3 Units
  • Grading: Law Honors/Pass/Restrd Cr/Fail
  • Learning Outcomes Addressed:
    • LO1 - Substantive and Procedural Law
    • LO2 - Legal Analysis and Reasoning
    • LO6 - Law Governing Lawyers/Ethical Responsibilities
  • Course Category:
    • Comparative Law & International Law

Notes: This course is cross-listed with Human Rights (HUMRTS 117) and International Policy (INTLPOL 355).

  • 2023-2024 Spring ( )
  • Tue, Thu
  • Room: LAW 90

Past Offerings

International Human Rights (5010): In part as a result of the rise of international human rights mechanisms in the twentieth century, conflicts over resources, privileges and power are now increasingly mediated through the lens of human rights, in terms of the protection of individual or group rights. Given that many of the most significant and complex national and international challenges today center on fundamental questions of human rights, understanding the legal regime that governs these rights is an important part of a comprehensive legal education. This course serves as an introduction to the law, theory and practice of international human rights, together with the instruments, organizations and arrangements that affect their implementation and enforcement. It will explore human rights as a philosophical and legal concept, and briefly probe differences between human rights, civil rights, and development frames. The course will then focus on the legal regime through which sovereign states have established human rights instruments and doctrine as part of positive international law, sometimes with binding domestic legal effects. We will review the foundations and history of international human rights law; the major international and regional human rights instruments and institutions; mechanisms and strategies of enforcement; and selected current issues in the field. A limited number of students have the option to write a long research paper in lieu of the final exam with consent of instructor. After the term begins, students accepted into the course can transfer from section (01) into section (02), which meets the R requirement, with consent of the instructor. Elements used in grading: Attendance, Class Participation, Exam or Research paper. This course is cross-listed with Human Rights (HUMRTS 117) and International Policy (INTLPOL 355). Advanced undergraduate and graduate students may request enrollment by sending a statement of interest to Professor Achiume (achiume@law.stanford.edu). Requests will be reviewed on a rolling basis.

Sections

International Human Rights | LAW 5010 Section 01 Class #1126

  • 3 Units
  • Grading: Law Honors/Pass/Restrd Cr/Fail
  • 2022-2023 Winter
    Schedule No Longer Available
    • 1L: Winter Elective (Open to First-Year JD Students)
  • Exam:
    • Take-home Final
  • Exam:
      • Remote: Details to come
  • Learning Outcomes Addressed:
    • LO1 - Substantive and Procedural Law
    • LO2 - Legal Analysis and Reasoning
    • LO6 - Law Governing Lawyers/Ethical Responsibilities
  • Course Category:
    • Comparative Law & International Law

  • 2022-2023 Winter
    Schedule No Longer Available

International Human Rights | LAW 5010 Section 02 Class #35655

  • 3 Units
  • Grading: Law Honors/Pass/Restrd Cr/Fail
  • 2022-2023 Winter
    Schedule No Longer Available
  • Enrollment Limitations: Consent
  • Graduation Requirements:
    • R -Research Requirement for Law Degree
  • Learning Outcomes Addressed:
    • LO1 - Substantive and Procedural Law
    • LO2 - Legal Analysis and Reasoning
    • LO3 - Ability to Conduct Legal Research
    • LO4 - Ability to Communicate Effectively in Writing
    • LO6 - Law Governing Lawyers/Ethical Responsibilities
  • Course Category:
    • Comparative Law & International Law

  • 2022-2023 Winter
    Schedule No Longer Available

International Human Rights (5010): This course offers an introduction to the theory and practice of human rights. We will examine major sources of international human rights law---including treaties, customary international law, and national law---as well as the institutions in which human rights are contested, adjudicated, and enforced. Key situses of human rights activity include multilateral organizations, like the United Nations Security Council and Human Rights Council; international, regional, and national courts and tribunals; and quasi-judicial treaty bodies, like the U.N. Committee Against Torture. This degree of jurisdictional redundancy offers an opportunity to explore questions of institutional design and interaction as well as processes of normative diffusion. The course will also consider the role of non-state actors---including non-governmental organizations, corporations, terrorist organizations, and ordinary individuals---in promoting and violating human rights. In addition to this survey of the human rights ecosystem, the course will engage some of the fundamental theoretical debates underlying the international human rights project with a focus on perennial questions of legitimacy, justiciability, compliance, and efficacy. Finally, we will explore a range of threats and challenges to the promotion of human rights---both perennial and novel---including economic under-development, terrorism, national security over-reach, patriarchy, and racism. We will read case law originating from all over the world, including the United States. Special Instructions: A limited number of students have the option to write a long research paper in lieu of the final exam with consent of instructor. After the term begins, students accepted into the course can transfer from section (01) into section (02), which meets the R requirement, with consent of the instructor. Elements used in grading: Class participation; exam or final long research paper. Cross-listed with Human Rights (HUMRTS 117) and International Policy (INTLPOL 355).

Sections

International Human Rights | LAW 5010 Section 01 Class #1095

  • Penelope Van Tuyl
  • 3 Units
  • Grading: Law Honors/Pass/Restrd Cr/Fail
  • 2021-2022 Winter
    Schedule No Longer Available
    • 1L: Winter Elective (Open to First-Year JD Students)
  • Exam:
    • One-Day Take-Home Exam
  • Exam:
      • Remote: Details to come
  • Learning Outcomes Addressed:
    • LO1 - Substantive and Procedural Law
    • LO2 - Legal Analysis and Reasoning
    • LO4 - Ability to Communicate Effectively in Writing
    • LO5 - Ability to Communicate Orally
  • Course Category:
    • Comparative Law & International Law

Notes: Cross-listed with Human Rights (HUMRTS 117) and International Policy (INTLPOL 355).

  • 2021-2022 Winter
    Schedule No Longer Available

International Human Rights | LAW 5010 Section 02 Class #1096

  • Penelope Van Tuyl
  • 3 Units
  • Grading: Law Honors/Pass/Restrd Cr/Fail
  • 2021-2022 Winter
    Schedule No Longer Available
  • Enrollment Limitations: Consent
    • 1L: Winter Elective (Open to First-Year JD Students)
  • Graduation Requirements:
    • R -Research Requirement for Law Degree
  • Learning Outcomes Addressed:
    • LO1 - Substantive and Procedural Law
    • LO2 - Legal Analysis and Reasoning
    • LO4 - Ability to Communicate Effectively in Writing
    • LO5 - Ability to Communicate Orally
  • Course Category:
    • Comparative Law & International Law

  • 2021-2022 Winter
    Schedule No Longer Available
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