The Privatissimum on Children’s Rights from a Comparative Perspective is a short but intense course, focusing on children’s rights within international human rights legal systems. The aim of the course is to equip students with both practical research skills in the field of international law (e.g. as a practitioner, researcher, law clerk), while also introducing key concepts in international children’s rights law.
Students will be asked to consider substantive issues in children’s rights, whilst also engaging in a comparative legal analysis of other human rights systems, some of which will have already been explored in the first part of the Advanced LL.M. programme. Students will an opportunity to consider how different human rights systems function, while also grappling with the complex and unique dimensions of children’s rights law.
Course Objectives
Introduce students to the unique dimensions of international law on children’s rights
Encourage students to reflect on differences between human rights law and children’s rights law, while also contrasting how different human rights systems address children’s rights through a comparative legal perspective
Strengthen research and writing skills both in groups and individually through a series of written assignments
Introduce students to legal sources and research methods that will support the writing process in their final thesis.
Mode of Instruction
The course will be delivered through a series of interactive sessions over a three-week period.
During the course, students will be asked to complete three legal writing/research assignments on children’s rights. The first and second assignments will be group-based while the third assignment will be completed individually. The first two assignments will be due ahead of session meetings. The third assignment (an individual research paper) will be due one week after the final session and may be completed remotely.
Assessment method
The grades for this course will be determined as follows:
In-class participation: 10% of final grade
Assignment #1 (group): 15% of final grade
Assignment #2 (group): 15% of final grade
Assignment #3 (individual final paper): 60% of final grade
Reading list
Literature:
To be announced.
Reader:
Course reader is available to be downloaded from Brightspace.
Contact Information
Dr. Sheila Varadan (Course Coordinator), Assistant Professor of Children’s Rights and Global Health, Child Law Department, Institute of Private Law, Leiden Law School, KOG Steenschuur 25, s.r.varadan@law.leidenuniv.nl
Prof. Dr. Ton Liefaard, Professor of Law/UNICEF Chair of Children’s Rights, Child Law Department, Institute of Private Law, Leiden Law School, KOG, Steenschuur 25, t.liefaard@law.leidenuniv.nl
Institution/division
Institute: Public law
Administration advanced masters: BIO
Mrs. Orsolya Kalsbeek-Bagdi and Ms. Kasia Janik: humanrights@law.leidenuniv.nl
Disclaimer
Currently these pages are being updated to reflect the courses for 2024 - 2025. Until these pages are fixed as per 1 September 2024 no rights can be claimed from the information which is currently contained within.
Should there be any future extenuating circumstances which may impinge our teaching and assessment, these could necessitate modification of the course descriptions after 1 September. This will only happen in the event of strict necessity and the interests of the students will be taken into account. Should there be a need for any change during the course, this will be informed to all students on a timely basis. Modifications after 1 September 2024 may only be done with the approval and consent of the Faculty Board and Programme Director.