International Human Rights in Canadian Immigration Law -- The Case of the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada

Abstract

This article analyzes the use of international human rights in the decision making of Canada's Immigration and Refugee Board. At the center of the analysis is a data set including all the publicly available decisions of the Board since the introduction of the 2002 Immigration and Refugee Protection Act. This data set has been coded for varying degrees of engagement with international human rights law, and the results are presented and scrutinized. At the broadest level, the results are disappointing for migrant advocates as international law is relied on in an infinitesimally small number of decisions.

Keywords: International Human Rights, Canada, Immigration law, Refugees