Horizontal Human Rights Law Revisited

Horizontal human rights law remains an intriguing matter of domestic, comparative, and international law. While much has been written on the different models of horizontality and the approaches to human rights and private law within certain jurisdictions, this research group will inquire into the law and politics behind the choices of following direct or indirect horizontality, or, as the case may be, of sticking with the vertical approach to human rights. Another aim of the research group is to examine the types of judicial remedies that make horizontal application effective. In particular, are jurisdictions that embrace horizontal application aligned with the actual competences and capabilities of their judiciaries? On the international level, debates on horizontal human rights law have experienced new momentum since the adoption of the Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights by the UN Human Rights Council, in 2011. Moreover, private regulation is also increasingly manifesting itself via the articulation of codes of conduct and other non-binding standards on fundamental rights between private actors. The research group will also analyze whether these developments have contributed to the judicial protection of international human rights law among private actors, or whether compliance with these informal norms is becoming more a matter of naming, shaming, and business strategy.