The Institute is pleased to announce the establishment of a new research programme analysing civil liability in tort or delict for gross human rights abuses. This research will consider the liability of individual perpetrators as well as state and corporations, both within national jurisdictions and transnationally across several jurisdictions. In many jurisdictions, under pressure of human rights standards, it is argued that civil law, such as tort law and the law of delict, should be developed in a manner that will foster accountability for gross human rights violations. This study will include a doctrinal comparative assessment of the arguments presented in several different jurisdictions and an assessment of how courts are responding to them.
