Transitional Justice (LAWS90253)

Graduate courseworkPoints: 12.5Not available in 2025

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Overview

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How do societies transition from mass atrocities to peace and reconciliation? Does law have a role to play in this transition?

Transitional justice practitioners and academics have argued legal/political institutions can be designed and implemented to aid in this transition, and around the world truth commissions, international criminal tribunals and administrative reparations programs have attempted to lay the foundations for a lasting peace. This subject will address the aspirations of transitional justice law and policy, both in the United Nations and other intergovernmental institutions, as well as in domestic and hybrid courts and truth commissions. This subject examines the institutional variations of these attempts, their critical assessments, and the practical challenges faced by prosecutors, judges, commissioners and administrators. It will also address the political and philosophical premises of transitional justice as a transnational endeavour, its promises and limitations, as examined by academics and practitioners.

Principal topics will include:

  • The origin and histories of transitional justice as international law and policy.
  • The political emotions of transitions to peace and democracy.
  • International law on genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity.
  • Trials, truth commissions and other institutional experiments.
  • Practical aspects of case-building and prosecution.
  • Practical aspects of victim participation, reparations, memorialisation, remedies and redistribution.

Other possible topics are:

  • The transformative aspirations of transitional justice law and policy
  • Specific issues in the transformation of gender, racial and ethnic injustice through transitional justice
  • Peacebuilding and non-repetition: guarantees of non-recurrence, accountability, vetting and institutional reform as part of transitional justice.
  • Philosophical questions about the nature of truth and collective memory.

Intended learning outcomes

A student who has successfully completed this subject should be able to:

  • Examine and explain the role and history of global law and politics as the background rules for political transitions
  • Analyse and describe the relationship between international human rights law, humanitarian law, and criminal law in political transitions
  • Critically evaluate approaches to transitional justice in various contexts and institutions around the world
  • Apply knowledge of the different legal and policy challenges to implementing transitional law in post-conflict societies.

Generic skills

  • Be able to critically and creatively evaluate law and policy across different international and comparative settings.
  • Be able to critically analyse the theoretical and practical problems faced by legal practitioners
  • Have the communication skills to clearly articulate and convey complex legal ideas to relevant specialist and non-specialist audiences
  • Engage with issues of global justice as reflected in international law and policy.

Last updated: 4 March 2025

Eligibility and requirements

Prerequisites

None

Corequisites

None

Non-allowed subjects

None

Recommended background knowledge

Applicants without legal qualifications should note that subjects are offered in the discipline of law at an advanced graduate level. While every effort will be made to meet the needs of students trained in other fields, concessions will not be made in the general level of instruction or assessment. Most subjects assume the knowledge usually acquired in a degree in law (LLB, JD or equivalent). Applicants should note that admission to some subjects in the Melbourne Law Masters will be dependent upon the individual applicant’s educational background and professional experience.

Inherent requirements (core participation requirements)

The University of Melbourne is committed to providing students with reasonable adjustments to assessment and participation under the Disability Standards for Education (2005), and the Assessment and Results Policy (MPF1326). Students are expected to meet the core participation requirements for their course. These can be viewed under Entry and Participation Requirements for the course outlines in the Handbook.

Further details on how to seek academic adjustments can be found on the Student Equity and Disability Support website: http://services.unimelb.edu.au/student-equity/home

Last updated: 4 March 2025

Assessment

DescriptionTimingPercentage

In-class presentation on a specific transitional justice institution (maximum 10 mins)

  • 10 minutes
Throughout the teaching period20%

Class participation

Throughout the teaching period10%

Research paper on a topic approved by the subject coordinator

  • 4000 words
14 February 202470%
Hurdle requirement: A minimum of 75% attendance is required.N/A

Last updated: 4 March 2025

Quotas apply to this subject

Dates & times

Not available in 2025

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Visit this webpage to find out about these key dates, including how they impact on:

  • Your tuition fees, academic transcript and statements.
  • And for Commonwealth Supported students, your:
       -  Student Learning Entitlement. This applies to all students enrolled in a Commonwealth Supported Place (CSP).
     

    Subjects withdrawn after the census date (including up to the ‘last day to withdraw without fail’) count toward the Student Learning Entitlement.

Additional delivery details

This subject has a quota of 30 students.

Please refer to the Melbourne Law Masters enrolment webpage for further information about re-enrolment, subject quotas and waitlists. 
Melbourne Law School may reserve places in a subject for incoming international cohorts or where a subject is core to a specialisation with limited alternate options. 

Last updated: 4 March 2025

Further information

Last updated: 4 March 2025