Human dignity is a powerful legal tool which has been developed across most, if not all, sources of law. This page focuses on a range of key types of resources and materials are gradually selected by the editorial team of the dignity&democracy blog. ( Last updated 16 August 2024)
Judges have been key actors in the development of human dignity around the world, both with reference to treaties and codified constitution and in the absence of such reference (e.g. no codified constitution or no codification of human dignity in the constitution).
Most, if not all, constitutions around the world now codify human dignity, typically as an overall value and/or as the first of the constitutional rights.
International scholarship on human dignity has considerably developed over the past twenty years or so.
Most human rights treaties adopted in the wake of the 1948 Universal Declaration on Human Rights also enshrine human dignity, which has become a well-established tool in human rights law.
Human dignity also features in a number of official reports, particularly those promoting reform towards a more just and inclusive society.