Monday 25 August 2014

New Edition of Jacobs White & Ovey ECHR Handbook

This summer also witnessed the publication of a new version of one of the other widely used handbooks about the ECHR: Jacobs, White & Ovey, The European Convention on Human Rights. This revised sixth edition was edited by Benadette Rainey (Cardiff University), Elizabeth Wicks (University of Leicester) and Claire Ovey (from the Court's Registry) and published with Oxford University Press.

The book's case-law has been updated until October 2013. For any further developments occurring between the publication of this version and a future one, the publisher offers an online resource centre, offering case-law and legislation updates (including on the half year since October 2013) as well as a set of useful links (including to this blog).

The book is the slightly less voluminous sister to Harris, O'Boyle and Warbrick handbook (around 650 pages vs 1000). It may therefore be a more palatable choice for students as an introduction into the ECHR at the beginner's level. This is all the more true as it includes at the end the full text of the Convention and the relevant Protocols. At the same time, the structure and level of detail make it an excellent work of reference for scholars and practitioners. Thus, deciding which of the two recently revised books to use is a question of taste (also because the difference in price is very small) - I have been using both for many years now.

This is the book's backcover blurb:

"Over fifty years after its founding, the European Court of Human Rights has dispensed more than 16,000 judgments and affects the lives of over 820 million people. The sixth edition of Jacobs, White & Ovey: The European Convention on Human Rights is a clear and concise companion to this increasingly important and extensive area of the law.

Examining each of the Convention rights in turn, the text lays out the key principles relevant to both students and practitioners. Cutting through the ever-expanding web of cases, authors take you to the pivotal cases in each area and examine the principles that underpin the Court's decisions. A focus on the European Convention itself, rather than its implementation in any one member state, makes Jacobs, White & Ovey essential reading for all those interested in the work of the Strasbourg Court."