International Children’s Rights: Reflections on a Complex, Dynamic, and Relatively Young Area of Law

Abstract

This chapter reflects on the aim of the International Children’s Rights volume to provide those wishing to study, research, and practice international children’s rights law with a contemporary and comprehensive legal text. It recaps on the themes that emerged from the process of commissioning and editing the various contributions from some of the world’s leading and emerging legal scholars in the area of children’s rights. It marks the progress that has been made in the implementation of children’s rights law and the many challenges that still exist in the implementation of the CRC and associated international instruments. It notes that legal scholarship in the field of children’s rights is still developing and that, although multidisciplinary research and analysis is valuable, it is important to reaffirm children’s rights as a field of law and legal practice. International children’s rights is a complex, dynamic, and relatively young area of law. As the contributions to the collection show, it is diverse and evolving, with many new aspects and issues worthy of analysis and scrutiny. This chapter encapsulates the aspiration of the volume editors that the book contribute to the scrutiny of the legal implications of the CRC, recognizing the unique features of international children’s rights law, adding to the ongoing development of this important area of law.