Applying Refugee Family Reunion Law Therapeutically

Abstract

This paper aims to highlight some of the key issues surrounding the development and application of immigration law as it applies in the United Kingdom (UK) to refugees attempting to be reunited with their families living abroad. The right for refugees to be reunited with their families is enshrined in international law, but this is frequently frustrated by the legal and administrative systems used in the UK. Using content analysis and doctrinal analysis techniques, the paper provides an examination of how a philosophy which considers the emotional effects of the law, therapeutic jurisprudence, could be used not only to inform interpretation of current domestic laws, but also influence the drafting of future legislation. This is an aspect of current refugee law in the United Kingdom which has yet to be examined. It provides, we argue, a humanitarian direction to statutory interpretation which may provide tangible benefits to current and proposed legal systems.

Therapeutic jurisprudence in an asylum and refugee family reunion clinic

“…The use of the European Convention on Human Rights should be used in the application form to enable the applicant to raise broader issues in the event of an appeal. And, most controversially, children as refugees are not able to be reunited with their parents through this law and application process (Ferris, Marson & Kawalek, 2019).…”