London, 26 April 2013
The Equal Rights Trust (ERT) and University College London Institute for Human Rights (UCL IHR) cordially invite you to a panel discussion entitled “Poverty and Rights: Can and Should the Law Promote Socio-Economic Equality?” on Thursday 6 June 2013.
Time: 18.00 to 19.30 followed by a reception
Place: Faculty of Laws, UCL, Bentham, House, Endsleigh Gardens, London.
Event Registration: please click here
In these times of austerity, the impact of public spending cuts on the most disadvantaged is in the spotlight. With research suggesting that the poor are disproportionately negatively impacted by spending cuts, the question of whether the law should step in on their behalf to challenge public spending decisions is at the fore. The longstanding divide between those who think that it is not the place of the law to redistribute resources and those who think socio-economic rights cannot be fully realised without such redistribution, is reignited.
Can equality law be used to transform human rights? Should the law lift people out of poverty? What is the appropriate role of the law in advancing the equal enjoyment of social rights such as the rights to health and education? Can the courts promote socio-economic equality without usurping the role of the state in determining resource allocation? Does it matter? The distinguished panellists will address these questions and engage in a discussion with the public on this topical issue.
The panellists will be:
- Judge Claire L’Heureux-Dubé - Judge of the Supreme Court of Canada 1987-2002 and prominent expert in human rights and equality.
- Judge Kate O’Regan - Judge of the South African Constitutional Court 1994-2009. Judge O’Regan has extensive experience of the approach of the South African courts towards equality and socio-economic rights.
- Dr Octavio Ferraz - Associate Professor of Law at the University of Warwick. Dr Ferraz’s research focuses on the role of courts in the enforcement of social and economic rights and he has written extensively on the Brazilian jurisprudence on the right to health.
- Dr Virginia Mantouvalou - Co-Director of the UCL Institute for Human Rights and Lecturer in Law. Virginia is co-author of Debating Social Rights (with Conor Gearty), as well as other publications on human rights, labour law and European law.
The event will be followed by a reception at which members of the public will have an opportunity to continue the discussion with the Equal Rights Trust and the panellists.
