Policy Press

Justice, law and human rights

There is no uniform adoption and application of an international set of rules upholding what is ‘right’ to protect society’s most vulnerable.

Disparities exist within and between countries; killings and enforced disappearances of human rights defenders, journalists and trade unionists persist despite international scrutiny and condemnation; unsecured rights for ethnic minorities, marginalised peoples, the young and the differently abled all illustrate that there is little room for complacency within the arenas of law and justice.

Addressing the UN Sustainable Development Goal 10: Reduced Inequalities and Goal 16: Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions, our publishing in this area examines how the law is responding, or failing to respond, to these issues in a global context.

Bristol University Press and Policy Press are signed up to the UN SDG Publishers Compact. In Justice, law and human rights, we aim to address the following goals:

SDG Publishers compact logoSDG 10: Reduced inequalitiesSDG 16: Peace, justice and strong institutions

Showing 61-72 of 200 items.

The Criminalisation of Unaccompanied Migrant Minors

Voices from the Detention Processes in Greece

Greece is a key EU entry country for unaccompanied migrant minors seeking safety but such children are frequently criminalised through detention processes. Giving voice to migrant children throughout, Papadopoulos promotes child-friendly practices and the safeguarding of fundamental rights.

Bristol Uni Press

Critical and Comparative Rhetoric

Unmasking Privilege and Power in Law and Legal Advocacy to Achieve Truth, Justice, and Equity

Through the lenses of comparative and critical rhetoric, this book theorizes how alternative approaches to communication can transform legal meanings and legal outcomes, infusing them with more inclusive participation, equity and justice.

Bristol Uni Press

Diverse Voices in Public Law

Taking a unique and critical approach to the study of Public Law, this book explores the main topics in UK Public Law from a range of underexplored perspectives and amplifies the voices of scholars who are underrepresented in the field. It represents a much-needed complement to traditional textbooks in Public Law.

Bristol Uni Press

Capacity, Participation and Values in Comparative Legal Perspective

With contributions from an international team of experts, this collection provides a much-needed international, comparative approach to mental capacity law.

Bristol Uni Press

Crime, Justice and COVID-19

This edited collection offers the first system-wide account of the impact of COVID-19 on crime and justice in England and Wales. Integrating first-hand narratives, it provides a critical discussion of the challenges faced by criminal justice agencies, together with policy and practice recommendations for future pandemic planning.

Policy Press

Southern and Postcolonial Perspectives on Policing, Security and Social Order

Postcolonial legacies continue to impact upon the Global South and this edited collection explores their influence on systems of policing and social ordering. Expanding the Southern Criminology agenda, the book critically examines social and environmental harms, violence and war crimes, human rights abuses and the criminalisation of protest.

Bristol Uni Press

COVID-19 and Racism

Counter-Stories of Colliding Pandemics

This book addresses the prejudices that emerged out of the collision of the two pandemics of 2020: COVID-19 and Racism.

Policy Press

Belief in Marriage

The Evidence for Reforming Weddings Law

EPDF and EPUB available Open Access under CC-BY-NC-ND licence. This book draws on the accounts of 170 individuals who had, or led, a wedding ceremony outside the legal framework. The authors examine what these ceremonies can tell us about how couples want to marry, and what aspects of the current law preclude them from doing so.

Bristol Uni Press

A Guide to Prisons and Penal Policy

Prisons Unlocked

This concise and accessible guide offers a critical overview of the prison system in England and Wales for students and practitioners. The book guides the reader through prison life as experienced by different stakeholder groups and is packed with learning features such as case studies and key concepts.

Policy Press

Adverse Childhood Experiences and Serious Youth Violence

Whereas crime more generally has fallen over the last 20 years, levels of serious youth violence remain high. This book explores the relationship between adverse childhood experiences and serious youth violence and advocates for a more psychosocial approach to trauma-informed policy and practice within the youth justice system.

Bristol Uni Press

Racism and Ethnic Inequality in a Time of Crisis

Findings from the Evidence for Equality National Survey

ePUB and EPDF available Open Access under CC-BY-NC-ND licence.

Drawing from the Evidence for Equality National Survey (EVENS), this book presents new evidence of ethnic inequalities and sheds new light on underlying racisms, opening them up to debate as crucial social concerns.

Policy Press

Defund the Police

An International Insurrection

This book examines the ‘defund the police’ movement from historical and contemporary perspectives. Against the backdrop of abolition and the failure of police reform, it uses international case studies to reimagine community safety beyond policing and imprisonment.

Policy Press