Britain’s Contributions to Human Rights Law

Abstract

This article assesses the various contributions made by the United Kingdom to the development of international human rights law (IHRL) in the last century and it focuses specifically on Britain’s contribution to the law and institutions of human rights as opposed to their enjoyment in practice. The initial focus of the article is on the political branches of the British State – its government and Parliament – in building the normative and institutional foundations of IHRL and in helping and promoting the work of these institutions. The article then looks at the contributions of the British judiciary and legal practitioners, which have been especially notable since the entry into force of the Human Rights Act 1998 (HRA). Finally, the article looks at the contributions of British academics, who have played an outsized role in the scholarly study of IHRL when compared to those from most other States.