As the case studies in this volume demonstrate, the law can be protective of human rights, but can also impede their realization. Over the years, people living with or affected by HIV have sometimes successfully claimed the protection of the law. In other instances, courageous
activists have challenged the law to embody the human rights protections they deserve. This volume presents 30 summaries of court or tribunal proceedings aimed at defending or securing the human rights of people living with, or vulnerable to, HIV. With an emphasis on cases from
developing countries, this volume examines key litigation efforts to advance a “human rightsbased approach” to HIV on three fronts: discrimination, access to treatment, and prevention and care for prisoners. Understanding the ways in which litigation has been used in the struggle for human rights, successfully or otherwise, helps legislators, jurists, advocates and policymakers to understand and use the law optimally in the response to AIDS.
