Advancing the field of international human rights by holding Canada accountable
This past summer, I worked as an in-house research fellow with the International Human Rights Program (IHRP) at the University of Toronto Faculty of Law. It was an immensely rewarding experience through which I honed my legal research and writing skills and learned about the field of international human rights law. I look forward to remaining involved with the IHRP as a co-lead for the Gender Apartheid in Afghanistan Working Group.
The IHRP, as part of the University of Toronto Faculty of Law, is an international human rights centre through which students can engage in meaningful social change. The IHRP aims to advance the field of international human rights law by encouraging Canada to adhere to its international obligations, particularly in the areas of corporate and state accountability, climate justice, and Indigenous rights. The IHRP advances the legal protection of existing and emerging international human rights obligations through legal channels and civil society in its student experiential learning opportunities, both components with which I interacted closely during my term. The IHRP’s experiential learning opportunities for students include clinical legal education, working groups, Rights Review publications, and summer fellowships.
The IHRP’s commitment to international human rights law drew me to the summer in-house research fellow position. Having been a member of the Women’s Human Rights Resources (WHRR) Working Group during my first year of law school, I gained exposure to women’s international human rights issues. I chose to work with the IHRP as a research fellow to broaden the surface-level understanding of human rights law and international law I gained with the WHRR. Additionally, a research-based position at the IHRP presented an exceptional opportunity to use the research and writing skills I had gained in a theoretical setting during the academic year.
I came to the clinic with a limited understanding of international law and practically no hands-on research experience. Throughout the summer, I acquired a deeper and more nuanced grasp of international law. Prior to this opportunity, I naïvely thought that working in international law narrowly involved working for the United Nations or other international diplomatic institutions. In fact, work in international law is broad and diverse—you can work for a corporate firm, incorporating international law within domestic legislation or securing reparations for victims of human rights violations in South Africa, much like IHRP Director Sandra Wisner has done.
As the summer in-house research fellow, I worked closely with Sandra Wisner to revamp the IHRP clinic course and conduct background research pertinent to IHRP’s partners and potential clients. One of the major projects I worked on this summer was drafting a comprehensive memorandum on the incorporation of international law within the Canadian judicial landscape. The memo explored the theoretical basis for international law incorporation; the practical application and interpretation of international law principles by Canadian courts; the evolution of Canadian cases based in international law arguments; and the views of several international law scholars as expressed in secondary sources. Although it was daunting to perform research within the international law context because my legal research experience had been limited to Canadian case law and research, I received ample feedback and support throughout the process.
One of the highlights of my experience was a research investigation on the involvement of a subsidiary in the human rights violations committed by its parent multinational corporation. This project was challenging, yet simultaneously exciting because I got to learn about corporate law by researching corporate structures and corporate legal personality, and by finding and analyzing the securities disclosures and corporate agreement of a multinational corporation and its subsidiaries. I also expanded my understanding of Canadian and foreign property and tort systems. It was rewarding to have my research have a real-world impact since it was presented to a client. Additionally, the assignment involved a two-day turnaround period. Oddly enough, I enjoyed the rush of the deadline and fully immersing myself into the discrete research-intensive task to which I was assigned.
For those interested in this opportunity, students should become involved with the IHRP in some capacity during the academic year. I highly recommend this opportunity for students who have an interest in international human rights law or international law more broadly.
