2. The Human Rights Act 1998: Overview

Abstract

Course-focused and comprehensive, the Textbook on series provide an accessible overview of the key areas on the law curriculum. This chapter provides an overview of the Human Rights Act 1998 (HRA 1998) and how it operates. It discusses the extent to which the Act fulfils the role of a ‘Bill of Rights’, as that concept is understood in other jurisdictions. A particular issue relevant to that discussion is that of ‘entrenchment’ and the extent to which the HRA 1998 can be said to have any special status different from other legislation. The supervision of the HRA 1998 is also considered.