Amicus Briefs | Human Rights Watch

US: End Life Without Parole for Juvenile Offenders

Jan 26, 2012

Human Rights Watch joined 25 other institutions in filing an amicus brief before the US Supreme Court in the upcoming cases of Miller v. Alabama and Jackson v. Arkansas. It argues that international practice, opinion, and treaty obligations support holding all life without parole sentences for juveniles unconstitutional.
US: Misuse of the Material Witness Statute

Jan 28, 2011

Human Rights Watch filed an amicus brief in the case of Ashcroft v. Al-Kidd, which challenges the US government’s misuse of the material witness statute to investigate and detain Mr. Abdullah al-Kidd and other individuals regarded as suspects in the wake of September 11, 2001.
US: California Should Reduce Overcrowding in its Prisons

Oct 28, 2010

Human Rights Watch, with the American Civil Liberties Union and other organizations, submitted a brief of Amici Curiae to the US Supreme Court in the case Schwarzenegger v. Plata.
Third Party Intervention in the European Court of Human Rights on the case of Kaos GL v Turkey

Nov 4, 2009
Brief of Amici Curiae Submitted to the United States Court of Military Commissions Review

Oct 26, 2009

Human Rights Watch joins partners in this brief arguing that the charge of material support for terrorism is not a violation of the laws of war and therefore such a charge falls outside the limited jurisdiction of military commissions.
Human Rights Watch and Minority Rights Group Intervention in Chagos Islanders v UK in the European Court of Human Rights

Jun 19, 2009
Military Commissions and Classified Information

Jan 15, 2009

Amici Curiae Brief submitted in the military commissions case against 9/11 defendents.
Latin American, Caribbean States Blocking UN Effort to End Juvenile Executions

Oct 28, 2008

Latin American and Caribbean governments should drop their opposition to UN efforts to end executions of juvenile offenders.
British Government's Diplomatic Assurances Policy

Oct 1, 2008

Human Rights Watch and JUSTICE submitted this amicus brief to the UK House of Lords in RB and U v. Secretary of State for the Home Department and Secretary of State for the Home Department v. OO (Othman), arguing that assurances from countries where torture and ill-treatment are routine are inherently ineffective and undermine the international legal prohibition against returning persons to places where they are at risk of torture or other ill-treatment.
Human Rights Watch Amicus Brief on Juvenile Detention

Jul 18, 2008

Human Rights Watch filed an amicus brief in the case of García Méndez, Emilio and Musa, Laura Cristina s/case No. 7537 that is now before the Supreme Court of Argentina. We argue that the system by which Argentine judges authorize the detention of children under 16 years of age in conflict with the law violates international human rights law set forth by the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), the American Convention on Human Rights (ACHR), and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). It also contradicts basic principles outlined in the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Administration of Juvenile Justice (The Beijing Rules), and the United Nations Rules for the Protection of Juveniles Deprived of their Liberty.