Complementary Protection in International Refugee Law

• The first dedicated study of the protection offered to asylum seekers who fall outside the legal definition of a refugee
• Traces the historical development of the legal framework from its origins before the 1951 Refugee Convention through to its contemporary application, illustrated with regional examples
• Examines unsuccessful international and European attempts to codify a system of complementary protection prior to the EU's adoption of the Qualification Directive in 2004

Readership: Academics and advanced scholars in international refugee law, European and UK refugee law, international human rights, international humanitarian law, politics, and current affairs.

Jane McAdam, Associate Professor, University of New South Wales

"This book is a laudable project, because it addresses an issue which is important both for practice and for theory. EU legislation and developments in case-law concerning general human rights instruments have changed the field in the past few years, hence a comprehensive study is timely...McAdam's book draws attention to an important issue. It is full of relevant information and insights." - Thomas Spijkerboer, Netherlands Quarterly of Human Rights, Vol 27/3, 2009

"'this book has an important role in encouraging the reader to consider the extent to which the existing framework might be applied to emerging patterns of migration and displacement. McAdam provides a solid foundation for the future analysis of issues which have the potential to shape the ongoing development of complementary protection in international law.'" - Modern Law Review 323, 325

"An outstanding contribution to the literature [that] is necessary reading for anyone engaged with refugee protection today" - UNSW Law Journal

"... a meticulously researched and carefully structured book, persuasively and elegantly written." - Peter Billings, 28 Legal Studies 143, 148

"... a weighty analysis that covers a broad area of considerable topical interest" - Professor Vaughan Lowe, Chichele Professor of International Law, University of Oxford

"McAdam writes very clearly: her lucid style makes her arguments very easy to follow, which is a real asset for an academic wishing to have an impact on law makers... McAdam's work is significant because of the unjust and arbitrary way in which Australia currently handles the compassionate and humanitarian claims of people who the system judges not to be refugees. This work provides a principles framework through which to approach the task of determining which non-refugees should be allowed to remain in Australia and what their base entitlements should be." - The Australian Yearbook of International Law, Volume 27

Table of Treaties and Statutes
Table of Cases
Abbreviations
Introduction
1: The Evolution of Complementary Protection
Introduction
Defining Complementary Protection
The 1951 Refugee Convention
Complementary Protection and International Law
Conclusion
2: The European Union Qualification Directive: The Creation of a Subsidiary Protection Regime
Creation of the Qualification Directive
The Directive's Subsidary Protection Regime
Subsidiary Protection Exclusion Clauses
The Content of International Protection: Substantive Rights
'Minimum Standards' - a Harmonized Approach?
Conclusion
3: An Alternative Asylum Mechanism: The Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or Punishment
Introduction
The Structure of the CAT
Torture Prohibition in Domestic Complementary Protection
Conclusion
4: The Scope of Ill-Treatment under the ECHR and ICCPR
Introduction
The ECHR and Asylum
Unqualified Rights
Qualified Rights
Protection for Socio-Economic Reasons
The International Reach of the ECHR
Conclusion
5: Protection and 'The Best Interests of the Child': The Convention on the Rights of the Child
Introduction
Special Protection of Children Under International Law
The Convention on the Rights of the Child
'The Best Interests of the Child' - Article 3
The Weight to be Given to the Child's Best Interests
Jurisprudence on 'The Best Interests of the Child'
Conclusion
6: The Legal Status of Persons to Whom the Refugee Convention Does Not Apply
Introduction
The Importance of Status
The Convention as a Lex Specialis and its Significance for Status
The Architecture of the Refugee Convention
Categories of Rights
Minimum Standards of Treatment for Non-Removable Persons
Conclusion
Conclusion
Bibliography