Book Launch: Legislated Rights

The Programme for the Foundations of Law & Constitutional Government, together with the Bonavero Institute of Human Rights, is pleased to host the launch of Legislated Rights, a co-authored book discussing the role of legislatures in protecting and promoting rights.

Legislated Rights argues that the important aspects of human wellbeing outlined in human rights instruments and constitutional bills of rights can only be adequately secured as and when they are rendered the object of specific rights and corresponding duties. It is often assumed that the main responsibility for specifying the content of such genuine rights lies with courts. Legislated Rights: Securing Human Rights through Legislation argues against this assumption, by showing how legislatures can and should be at the centre of the practice of human rights. This jointly authored book explores how and why legislatures, being strategically placed within a system of positive law, can help realise human rights through modes of protection that courts cannot provide by way of judicial review.

The launch will involve a panel discussion of the book by Kate O'Regan, Aileen Kavanagh and Timothy Endicott. The event will be chaired by John Finnis.

Legislated Rights is co-authored by Grégoire Webber (Queen's), Paul Yowell (Oxford), Richard Ekins (Oxford), Maris Köpcke-Tinturé (Barcelona), Bradley W. Miller (Court of Appeal for Ontorio) and Francisco J. Urbina (Pontifical University of Chile), and is published by Cambridge University Press.

A drinks reception with the authors will follow the panel discussion.