International Refugee Law and the Protection of Stateless Persons

International Refugee Law and the Protection of Stateless Persons examines the extent to which the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees protects de jure stateless persons. While de jure stateless persons are clearly protected by the 1954 Convention relating to the Status of Stateless Persons, this book seeks to explore the extent to which such persons are also entitled to refugee status. The questions addressed include the following: When is a person 'without a nationality' for the purpose of the 1951 Refugee Convention? What constitutes one's country of former habitual residence as a proxy to one's country of nationality? When does being stateless give rise to a well-founded fear of persecution for reasons specified in the 1951 Refugee Convention and/or UNHCR mandate? What are the circumstances under which statelessness constitutes persecution or inhuman or degrading treatment? How are courts assessing individual risk or threat to stateless persons?

The book draws on historical and contemporary interpretation of international law based on the travaux préparatoires to the 1951 Refugee Convention and its antecedents, academic writing, UNHCR policy and legal documents, UN Human Rights Council resolutions, UN Human Rights Committee general comments, UN Secretary General reports, and UN General Assembly resolutions. It is also based on original comparative analysis of existing jurisprudence worldwide relating to claims to refugee status based on or around statelessness. By examining statelessness through the prism of international refugee law, this book fills a critical gap in existing scholarship.

Michelle Foster, Professor and Associate Dean of Research, Melbourne Law School, Hélène Lambert, Professor of International Law, University of Westminster,

Dr Michelle Foster is a Professor, and Director of the International Refugee Law Research Programme in the Institute for International Law and the Humanities at Melbourne Law School. Her teaching and research interests are in the areas of public law, international refugee law, and international human rights law. Michelle has published widely in the field of international refugee law. Michelle has undertaken consultancy work for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, and training of refugee tribunal members in New Zealand and Australia. Michelle is an Advisory Board Member of the Melbourne Journal of International Law, an Associate Member of the International Association of Refugee Law Judges and joint case editor (with Professor Helene Lambert) of the International Journal of Refuge Law.

Hélène Lambert (PhD, Exeter; Maitrise de Droit Public, Strasbourg) is Professor of International law and Research Director of the Law School at the University of Westminster, London. Previously, she has held lectureships at Exeter and Brunel universities. She has also held visiting fellowships at the University of Melbourne Law School (2015) and the Refugee Studies Centre (University of Oxford, 1999). Helene has been a consultant for the Council of Europe, the UNHCR, and the Swedish Ministry of Justice. She has published numerous books and articles on refugee law and human rights, as well as on international law and international relations.