The Execution of Justice in Venezuela
In 2009, Judge María Lourdes Afiuni released a political prisoner on bail. Hours after the judgment was delivered, the late President Hugo Chávez appeared on national television, labelling Afiuni a...
Right against Torture
The Mandatory Death Penalty and Narratives of the Common Law
Some people say the common law is all about narrative. A story gets told, then retold and retold and with each retelling it changes a little. Most of the work...
Glossip v. Gross: SCOTUS Affirmation of Underdeveloped Science for the Lifeline of the Death Penalty
On 29 June 2015, in Glossip v. Gross 576 U. S. ____ (2015), Justice Alito gave the majority opinion (joined by Roberts C.J., and Scalia, Kennedy and Thomas, J.J.), which...
Mexico’s Torture Problem
The UN Special Rapporteur on Torture’s finding that ‘torture in Mexico is generalized’ drew an uncharacteristically sharp response from the Mexican Government, which accused Juan Méndez of being ‘irresponsible and...
Hutchinson v UK – A Change in Direction on Whole Life Orders?
The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) has ruled in Hutchinson v UK that the imposition of a ‘whole life order’ for murder does not violate Article 3 ECHR. The...
Northern Ireland’s Human Rights Commission Granted Leave for Judicial Review to Challenge the Country’s Near-Blanket Ban on Abortion
Unlike the rest of the UK, Northern Ireland is not covered by the Abortion Act 1967. If you are a woman living there who wishes to terminate a pregnancy, the...
Whole Life Sentences in Hutchinson v UK – Compromise or Concession?
In Hutchinson v UK, the ECtHR again addressed the vexed question of the compatibility of whole life sentences with human rights law. This post analyses the Chamber decision, recognising the...
Prisoner Rights at the Forefront of Canadian Debates
Over the past month, two major developments have placed the constitutionally protected rights of prisoners front and centre in the Canadian press. The first of these developments is at the...
Capital Punishment in China: Room for Cautious Optimism?
Recent weeks have seen the resumption of executions in Jordan, after an 8-year de facto moratorium, and in Pakistan, following the murderous terrorist attack on a school in Peshawar, along...
The Duty of National Authorities to Investigate Allegations of Torture
Proponents of universal jurisdiction for international crimes will be gratified by the judgment of the Constitutional Court of South Africa in the case of National Commissioner of the South African...
The Unified Screening Mechanism: Hong Kong to Assess Refugee Claims Alongside Torture Claims
The UNHCR previously had the role of assessing and determining refugee claims (“persecution claims”) in Hong Kong in accordance with Art. 33 of the Convention Relating to the Status of...
Canadian Constitutional Challenge to Prohibition on Assisted-Dying
Canada’s top court is once again set to decide on the constitutionality of physician-assisted dying for terminally ill patients. Last Wednesday, the Supreme Court of Canada heard oral arguments in...
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