General Course Information
1.1 Course details
| Course code: | LLAW6062 / JDOC6062 |
| Course name: | Economic, Social and Cultural Rights |
| Programme offered under: | LLM Programme / JD Programme |
| Semester: | June |
| Prerequisites / Co-requisites: | No |
| Credit point value: | 9 credits / 6 credits |
1.2 Course description
Economic, social and cultural rights (“ESC rights”) are often referred to as ‘second generation human rights’ in the international human rights discourse. One of the most significant pieces of international human rights instrument which guarantees ESC rights is the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR, entered into force in 1976). ESC rights are similar to civil and political rights in many respects, but there are also fundamental differences. ESC rights had generated much controversy in the past, as they were regarded by many as merely “aspirational rights” – rights not immediately realizable but dependent on the level of development and affluence of a state. However, there had been significant developments in acknowledging the justiciability of ESC rights in recent years. ESC rights cases have since been litigated in many national courts, with varying degrees of success. There has also been a bourgeoning of academic literature on the subject, as well as an increasing reference to ESC rights by human rights organizations in advocacy campaigns. Yet there remain significant issues on the substantive contents and implementation of these rights, and on how to monitor states’ compliance.
This course will begin with a discussion of the theoretical and historical development of ESC rights under the international human rights system. It will then examine the sources of ESC rights, the obligations of states and the implementation of ESC rights at both international and domestic levels. Among the substantive contents of ESC rights, the course will study the right to food, the right to water, the right to the highest attainable standard of health, the right to work, the right to social welfare, and the right to housing. The course will also look at approaches to monitoring and advocacy strategies for the realization of ESC rights.
1.3 Course teachers
| Name | E-mail address | Office | Consultation | |
| Course convenor | Karen Kong | kykong@hku.hk | CCT 910 | By email |
Learning Outcomes
2.1 Course Learning Outcomes (CLOs) for this course
CLO 1 Understand the different conceptual foundations of ESC rights.
CLO 2 Explain the historical development of ESC rights under the international human rights framework.
CLO 3 Analyse the content and scope of selected ESC rights and their relevant case law.
CLO 4 Critically evaluate the adjudication of selected ESC rights at the international, regional and national levels.
CLO 5 Examine the approaches to monitor the implementation of ESC rights and advocacy strategies in practice.
CLO 6 Conduct in-depth research and analysis on a current topic on ESC rights.
2.2 LLM and JD Programme Learning Outcomes (PLOs)
Please refer to the following link:
LLM – https://course.law.hku.hk/llm-plo/
JD – https://course.law.hku.hk/jd-plo/
2.3 Programme Learning Outcomes to be achieved in this course
| PLO A | PLO B | PLO C | PLO D | PLO E | PLO F | |
| CLO 1 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |||
| CLO 2 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ||
| CLO 3 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ||
| CLO 4 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
| CLO 5 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
| CLO 6 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Assessment(s)
3.1 Assessment Summary
| Assessment task | Due date | Weighting | Feedback method* | Course learning outcomes |
| TBA | TBC | 100% | 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 |
| *Feedback method (to be determined by course teacher) | |
| 1 | A general course report to be disseminated through Moodle |
| 2 | Individual feedback to be disseminated by email / through Moodle |
| 3 | Individual review meeting upon appointment |
| 4 | Group review meeting |
| 5 | In-class verbal feedback |
3.2 Assessment Detail
To be advised by course convenor(s).
3.3 Grading Criteria
Please refer to the following link: https://www.law.hku.hk/_files/law_programme_grade_descriptors.pdf
Learning Activities
4.1 Learning Activity Plan
| Seminar: | 3-hour seminars in June 2021 |
| Private study time: | 9.5 hours / week for 12 teaching weeks |
Remarks: the normative student study load per credit unit is 25 ± 5 hours (ie. 150 ± 30 hours for a 6-credit course), which includes all learning activities and experiences within and outside of classroom, and any assessment task and examinations and associated preparations.
4.2 Details of Learning Activities
To be advised by course convenor(s).
Learning Resources
5.1 Resources
| Reading materials: | Reading materials are posted on Moodle |
| Core reading list: | TBA |
| Recommended reading list: | TBA |
5.2 Links
Please refer to the following link: http://www.law.hku.hk/course/learning-resources/