Basic Equality and Discrimination : Reconciling Theory and Law

Basic Equality and Discrimination examines the justification, interpretation and application of discrimination law. In order to navigate the often dense and conflicted jurisprudence in this area, the work first considers equality as a moral and political concept, thus providing a clearer understanding of the nature of the value - equality - and illustrating the nature of the difficulties posed by constitutional and ordinary ''equality law''.

The focus of this book is the idea of equality as a moral, political and jurisprudential concept. The author is motivated primarily by a concern to better understand conundrums in the justification, interpretation and application of discrimination law. Nicholas Smith aims to provide a clearer understanding of the nature of the value that the law is trying to uphold - equality. He rejects the notion that the concept of equality is vacuous and defends the idea as the proper range of moral concern. After discussing the general characteristics of the denial of equality and some types of discrimination, Smith considers prominent views on the point of equality law. He argues that human rights lawyers should step back from the business of trying to steer courts towards vague equality goals informed by conceptions of equality that are either empty or even more abstract than the notion of equality itself. If they do, Smith thinks that the meaning of ''equality'' will be apparent, though abstract, and our difficulties will be shown to be, in the first instance, moral ones. These moral issues will require more rigorous attention before we can draft discrimination law which gives clear effect to a widely legitimate understanding of what it means to uphold and promote equality. This book will be a valuable resource for students and researchers working in the areas of legal philosophy, political theory, public law, and human rights law.