Comparative Disability Law: Reading Group
Spring term, Block L
M 5:00 PM - 7:00 PM
Professor Michael Stein
1 classroom credit LAW-33005A Spring
This reading group will provide a general introduction to worldwide legal protections of the rights of people with disabilities, a group that comprises about 10% of the world's population. It will begin by establishing the Americans with Disabilities Act, which more than forty countries have emulated, as a baseline and then move outward globally towards international instruments such as the European Union's Framework Directive, and especially the newly adopted United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
We will consider application of these laws to a wide range of public and private conduct, with special emphasis on employment. Throughout, we will evaluate critically the ways that various legal systems respond to disability-based disadvantage (e.g., antidiscrimination, social welfare, and equality measures), the merits of these competing models within different societies and legal systems, and the types of social perspectives they reveal.
The instructor participated in the negotiations leading to the UNCRPD's adoption, and continues as Executive Director of the Harvard Project on Disability to advise governments, national human rights institutions, and disabled persons organizations regarding their domestic disability laws and policies. Thus, one component of the reading group will involve critiquing and providing feedback on currently pending legislation. Another element will be brainstorming and facilitating test case litigation strategies. The reading group also anticipates hosting international experts on disability law to share their perspectives and advocacy experiences.