International Human Rights legal instruments dealing with vulnerable adults

Specialised section part of Ravel – Repository on the International Protection of Adults

United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
1. Text
2. Status
3. Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD)
  - General comments
  - Biannual/Sessional reports
  - Statements, declarations and observations
  - Case-law
4. Bibliography and relevant documents
5. Other UN documents
6. NGOs and civil society initiatives
7. Useful websites
Regional Human Rights instruments
1. European system
  - European Union
  - Council of Europe
2. Inter-American system
3. African system

United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities

1. Text

Adoption: 13 December 2006
PDF version of the text of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD) and of its Optional Protocol in English (also with in the accessible version), French, Spanish, Arabic, Russian and Chinese
Translations of the text of the UNCRPD in Albanian, Portuguese, Bangla, Khmer, Croatian, Greek, Hungarian, Persian (Farsi), Hebrew, Japanese, Kiswahili, Maltese, Dutch, Polish, Korean, Romanian, Slovenian, Swedish and Turkish available in the section “Other translations *“
Sign language versions of the text of the UNCRPD available in the section “Sign language*“
Easy read versions of the text of the UNCRPD available in the section “Easy read versions*“
Guiding Principles of the UNCRPD

2. Status

3. Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD)

General comments

All General comments are available in different languages here.

General comments which are relevant for the purposes of Ravel are the following ones:

CRPD Committee, General comment No. 1 (2014), Article 12: Equal recognition before the law, 19 May 2014, UN Doc. CRPD/C/GC/1
CRPD Committee, General comment No. 2 (2014), Article 9: Accessibility, 22 May 2014, UN Doc. CRPD/C/GC/2
CRPD Committee, General comment No. 5 (2017), Article 19: Right to independent living, 27 October 2017, UN Doc. CRPD/C/GC/5
CRPD Committee, General comment No. 6 (2018), Article 5: Equality and non-discrimination, 26 April 2018, UN Doc. CRPD/C/GC/6

Biannual/Sessional reports

All biannual/sessional reports of the CRPD are available in different languages here.

Statements, declarations and observations

All statements, declarations and observations of the CRPD are available here.

Case-law

CRPD Committee, A. F. v. Italy, Communication No. 9/2012, UN Doc. CRPD/C/13/D/9/2012
CRPD Committee, A. M. v. Australia, Communication No. 12/2013, UN Doc. CRPD/C/13/D/2/2013
CRPD Committee, A. M. G. and A. N. S. v. Sweden, Communication No. 80/2020, UN Doc. CRPD/C/30/D/80/2020
CRPD Committee, A. N. P. v. South Africa, Communication No. 29/2015, UN Doc. CRPD/C/23/D/29/2015
CRPD Committee, A. S. v. Sweden, Communication No. 74/2019, UN Doc. CRPD/C/25/D/74/2019
CRPD Committee, al-Sayed and Mangisto v. State of Palestine, Communication No. 67/2019, UN Doc. CRPD/C/28/D/67/2019
CRPD Committee, Al Adam v. Saudi Arabia, Communication No. 38/2016, UN Doc. CRPD/C/20/D/38/2016
CRPD Committee, Bacher v. Austria, Communication No. 26/2014, UN Doc. CRPD/C/19/D/26/2014
CRPD Committee, Bellini v. Italy, Communication No. 51/2018, UN Doc. CRPD/C/27/D/51/2018
CRPD Committee, Calleja Loma and Calleja Lucas v. Spain, Communication No. 41/2017, UN Doc. CRPD/C/23/D/41/2017
CRPD Committee, D. L. v. Sweden, Communication No. 31/2015, UN Doc. CRPD/C/17/D/31/2015
CRPD Committee, D. R. v. Australia, Communication No. 14/2013, UN Doc. CRPD/C/17/D/14/2013
CRPD Committee, Doolan v. Australia, Communication No. 18/2013, UN Doc. CRPD/C/22/D/18/2013
CRPD Committee, E. O. J., O. O. J., F. I. J., E. J. v. Sweden, Communication No. 28/2015, UN Doc. CRPD/C/18/D/28/2015
CRPD Committee, F. v. Austria, Communication No. 21/2014, UN Doc. CRPD/C/14/D/21/2014
CRPD Committee, F. O. F. v. Brazil, Communication No. 40/2017, UN Doc. CRPD/C/23/D/40/2017
CRPD Committee, Fiona Given v. Australia, Communication N. 19/2014, UN Doc. CRPD/C/19/D/19/2014
CRPD Committee, G. J. D. v. Australia, Communication No. 36/2016, UN Doc. CRPD/C/24/D/36/2016
CRPD Committee, Gaetan Sabadie v. France, Communication No. 52/2018, UN Doc. CRPD/C/29/D/52/2018
CRPD Committee, García Vara v. Mexico, Communication No. 70/2019, UN Doc. CRPD/C/28/D/70/2019
CRPD Committee, Gemma Beasley v. Australia, Communication No. 11/2013, UN Doc. CRPD/C/15/D/11/2013
CRPD Committee, Grainne Sherlock v. Australia, Communication No. 20/2014, UN Doc. CRPD/C/24/D/20/2014
CRPD Committee, H. M. v. Sweden, Communication No. 3/2011, UN Doc. CRPD/C/7/D/3/2011
CRPD Committee, Henley v. Australia, Communication No. 56/2018, UN Doc. CRPD/C/27/D/56/2018
CRPD Committee, Iuliia Domina, Max Bendtsen v. Denmark, Communication No. 39/2017, UN Doc. CRPD/C/20/D/39/2017
CRPD Committee, J. H. v. Australia, Communication No. 35/2016, UN Doc. CRPD/C/20/D/35/2016
CRPD Committee, J. -L. K. v. Canada, Communication No. 76/2020, UN Doc. CRPD/C/30/D/76/2020
CRPD Committee, J. M. v. Spain, Communication No. 37/2016, UN Doc. CRPD/C/23/D/37/2016
CRPD Committee, J. M. v. Sweden, Communication No. 53/2018, UN Doc. CRPD/C/26/D/53/2018
CRPD Committee, J. M. V. A. v. Spain, Communication No. 47/2018, UN Doc. CRPD/C/29/D/47/2018
CRPD Committee, J. S. v. United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Communication No. 85/2021, UN Doc. CRPD/C/27/D/85/2021
CRPD Committee, K. S. v. Sweden, Communication No. 55/2018, UN Doc. CRPD/C/27/D/55/2018
CRPD Committee, Kenneth McAlpine v. United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Communication No. 6/2011, UN Doc. CRPD/C/8/D/6/2011
CRPD Committee, Leo v. Australia, Communication No. 17/2013, UN Doc. CRPD/C/22/D/17/2013
CRPD Committee, Liliane Gröninger and others v. Germany, Communication No. 2/2010, UN Doc. CRPD/C/D/2/2010
CRPD Committee, L. M. L. v. United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Communication No. 27/2015, UN Doc. CRPD/C/17/D/27/2015
CRPD Committee, M. Köck v. Austria, Communication No. 50/2018, UN Doc. CRPD/C/26/D/50/2018
CRPD Committee, M. R. v. Australia, Communication No. 16/2014, UN Doc. CRPD/C/18/D/16/2013
CRPD Committee, M. R. i V. v. Spain, Communication No. 48/2018, UN Doc. CRPD/C/26/D/48/2018
CRPD Committee, M. S. v. Sweden, Communication No. 66/2019, UN Doc. CRPD/C/25/D/66/2019
CRPD Committee, M. Y. v. Sweden, Communication No. 49/2018, UN Doc. CRPD/C/24/D/49/2018
CRPD Committee, Medina Vela v. Mexico, Communication No. 32/2015, UN Doc. CRPD/C/22/D/32/2015
CRPD Committee, Makarova v. Lithuania, Communication No. 30/2015, UN Doc. CRPD/C/18/D/30/2015
CRPD Committee, Marie-Louise Jüngelin v. Sweden, Communication No. 5/2011, UN Doc. CRPD/C/12/D/5/2011
CRPD Committee, Mario Jesús Rodríguez Arias v. Spain, Communication No. 33/2015, UN Doc. CRPD/C/17/D/33/2015
CRPD Committee, Marlon James Noble v. Australia, Communication No. 7/2012, UN Doc. CRPD/C/16/D/7/2012
CRPD Committee, Michael Lockrey v. Australia, Communication No. 13/2013, UN Doc. CRPD/C/15/D/13/2016
CRPD Committee, Mikkelsen v. Denmark, Communication No. 61/2019, UN Doc. CRPD/C/29/D/61/2019
CRPD Committee, N. B. and M. W. J. v. United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Communication No. 43/2017, UN Doc. CRPD/C/22/D/43/2017
CRPD Committee, N. L. v. Sweden, Communication No. 60/2019, UN Doc. CRPD/C/23/D/60/2019
CRPD Committee, N. N. v. Germany, Communication No. 29/2015, UN Doc. CRPD/C/23/D/29/2015
CRPD Committee, Nyusti and Takács v. Hungary, Communication No. 1/2010, UN Doc. CRPD/C/9/D/1/2010
CRPD Committee, O. B. v. Ukraine, Communication No. 54/2018, UN Doc. CRPD/C/30/D/54/2018
CRPD Committee, O. O. J. v. Sweden, Communication No. 28/2015, UN Doc. CRPD/C/18/D/28/2015
CRPD Committee, P. L., I. L., D. P. and A. T. v. France, Communication No. 59/2019, UN Doc. CRPD/C/28/D/59/2019
CRPD Committee, R. I. v. Ecuador, Communication No. 25/2014, UN Doc. CRPD/C/22/D/25/2014
CRPD Committee, R. K. H. M. v. Canada, Communication No. 57/2019, UN Doc. CRPD/C/29/D/57/2019
CRPD Committee, R. M. H. v. Sweden, Communication No. 86/2021, UN Doc. CRPD/C/29/D/86/2021
CRPD Committee, Rékasi v. Hungary, Communication No. 44/2017, UN Doc. CRPD/C/25/D/44/2017
CRPD Committee, Richard Sahlin v. Sweden, Communication No. 45/2018, UN Doc. CRPD/C/23/D/45/2018
CRPD Committee, S. C. v. Brazil, Communication No. 10/2013, UN Doc. CRPD/C/12/D/10/2013
CRPD Committee, S. K. v. Finland, Communication No. 46/2018, UN Doc. CRPD/C/26/D/46/2018
CRPD Committee, Shaaban al-Sayed and Gashao Mangisto v. State of Palestine, Communication No. 68/2019, UN Doc. CRPD/C/28/D/68/2019
CRPD Committee, Steven Kendall v. Australia, Communication No. 15/2013, UN Doc. CRPD/C/21/D/15/2013
CRPD Committee, T. M. v. Greece, Communication No. 42/2017, UN Doc. CRPD/C/21/D/42/2017
CRPD Committee, V. F. C. v. Spain, Communication No. 34/2015, UN Doc. CRPD/C/21/D/34/2015
CRPD Committee, X. v. Argentina, Communication No. 8/2012, UN Doc. CRPD/C/11/D/8/2012
CRPD Committee, X. v. United Republic of Tanzania, Communication No. 22/2014, UN Doc. CRPD/C/18/D/22/2014
CRPD Committee, Y. v. United Republic of Tanzania, Communication No. 23/2014, UN Doc. CRPD/C/20/D/23/2014
CRPD Committee, Z. v. United Republic of Tanzania, Communication No. 24/2014, UN Doc. CRPD/C/22/D/24/2014
CRPD Committee, Z. H. v. Sweden, Communication No. 58/2019, UN Doc. CRPD/C/25/D/58/2019
CRPD Committee, Zsolt Bujdosó and five others v. Hungary, Communication No. 4/2011, UN Doc. CRPD/C/10/D/4/2011

4. Bibliography and relevant documents

Oddný Mjöll Arnardóttir and Gerard Quinn (eds), The UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities: European and Scandinavian perspectives (Martinus Nijhoff Publishers 2009). 🔒
Anna Arstein-Kerslake and Eilionóir Flynn, ‘The General Comment on Article 12 of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities: A Roadmap for Equality Before the Law’ [2015] 20(4)The International Journal of Human Rights 1-20. 🔒
Anna Arstein-Kerslake and Eilionóir Flynn, ‘The right to legal agency: domination, disability and the protections of Article 12 of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities’ [2017] 13(1) International Journal of Law in Context 22-38. 🔒
Anna Arstein-Kerslake, Joanne Watson, Michelle Browning, Jonathan Martinis and Peter Blanck, ‘Future Directions in Supported Decision-Making‘ [2017] 37(1) Disability Studies Quarterly 23 ss.
Jacqueline M Atkinson and Jacquie Reilly, ‘Limitations to the Scope and Binding Force of Advance Directives: The Conflict Between Compulsory Treatment and the Right to Self-Determination’ in Peter Lack, Nikola Biller-Andorno and Susanne Brauer (eds), Advance Directives (Springer 2014), 91-100.
Vincenzo Barba, ‘Persone con disabilità e capacità. Art. 12 della Convenzione sui diritti delle Persone con Disabilità e diritto civile italiano’ in Pietro Perlingieri (ed), Rassegna di diritto civile, (Edizioni Scientifiche Italiane 2/2021), 419-449. 🔒
Marzia Barbera, Il nuovo diritto antidiscriminatorio (Giuffrè 2007). 📚
Linda Barclay, Disability with Dignity: Justice, Human Rights and Equal Status (Routledge 2019).
Sylvia Bell, ‘Dignity and Disability’ in Edward Sieh and Judy McGregor (eds), Human Dignity. Establishing Worth and Seeking Solutions (Palgrave Macmillan London 2020), 37-52. 🔒
Maria Giulia Bernardini, Disabilità, giustizia, diritto. Itinerari tra filosofia del diritto e Disability Studies (Giappichelli 2016). 📚
Daniel Bianchi, ‘Advance directives: Addressing the obligations of support as part of the right of a person with disabilities to equal recognition before the law?’ [2020] 70 International Journal of Law and Psychiatry 1-14.🔒
Christine Bigby, Mary Whiteside and Jacinta Douglas, ‘Providing support for decision making to adults with intellectual disability: Perspectives of family members and workers in disability support services‘ [2017] 44(4) Journal of Intellectual and Developmental Disability 396-409.
Christine Bigby and Jacinta Douglas, ‘Supported Decision Making‘ in Roger J Stancliffe, Michael L Wehmeyer, Karrie A Shogren, Brian H Abery (eds), Choice, Preference, and Disability. Promoting Self-Determination Across the Lifespan (Springer 2020), 45-66.
David Bilchitz, ‘Dignity, Fundamental Rights and Legal Capacity: Moving Beyond the Paradigm set by the General Comment on Article 12 of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities’ [2016] 32(3) South African Journal on Human Rights 410-437. 🔒
Peter Blanck, ‘Supported Decision-Making: Emerging Paradigm in Research, Law, and Policy‘ [2023] 34(1) Journal of Disability Policy Studies 3-7.
Peter Blanck and Eilionóir Flynn, Routledge Handbook of Disability Law and Human Rights (Routledge 2017).
Andrea Broderick and Delia Ferri, International and European Disability Law and Policy. Text, cases and materials (Cambridge University Press 2019).
Matthew Burch, ‘Autonomy, Respect, and the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in Crisis‘ [2017] 34(3) Journal of Applied Philosophy 389-402.
Anne-Marie Callus, ‘Removing obstacles to equal recognition for persons with intellectual disability: Taking exception to the way things are‘ [2018] 12(3) Alter 153-165.
Helen I Cannella-Malone and Linsey M Sabielny, ‘Preference Assessments, Choice, and Quality of Life for People with Significant Disabilities’ in Roger J Stancliffe, Michael L Wehmeyer, Karrie A Shogren, Brian H Abery (eds), Choice, Preference, and Disability. Promoting Self-Determination Across the Lifespan (Springer 2020), 195-206.
Terry Carney, ‘Guardianship, “Social” Citizenship and Theorising Substitute Decision-Making Law’ in Israel Doron and Ann M Soden (eds), Beyond Elder Law: New Directions in Law and Ageing (Springer 2012), 1-17.
Jillian Craigie, Michael Bach, Sándor Gurbai, Arlene Kanter, Scott Y H Kim, Oliver Lewis and Graham Morgan, ‘Legal capacity, mental capacity and supported decision-making: Report from a panel event’ [2019] 62 International Journal of Law and Psychiatry 160-168.
Gavin Davidson, Berni Kelly, Geraldine Macdonald, Maria Rizzo, Louise Lombard, Oluwaseye Abogunrin, Victoria Clift-Matthews and Alison Martin, ‘Supported decision making: A review of the international literature’ [2015] 38(2) International Journal of Law and Psychiatry 61-67. 🔒
Clíona de Bhailìs and Eilionóir Flynn, ‘Recognising legal capacity: commentary and analysis of Article 12 CRPD’ [2017] 13(1) International Journal of Law in Context 6-21. 🔒
Kevin De Sabbata, ‘Dementia, Treatment Decisions, and the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons With Disabilities. A New Framework for Old Problems‘ [2020] 11 Frontiers in Psychiatry 1-16.
Theresia Degener, ‘Disability in a Human Rights Context’ [2016] 5(3) Laws 35 ss.
Theresia Degener and Gerard Quinn, ‘A survey of international, comparative and regional disability law reform’ in Mary Lou Breslin and Silivia Yee (eds), Disability Rights Law and Policy. International and National Perspectives (Transnational Publishers 2002), 3-125. 🔒
Valentina Della Fina, Rachele Cera and Giuseppe Palmisano (eds), The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities: A Commentary (Springer 2017). 🔒
Nandini Devi, ‘Supported Decision-Making and Personal Autonomy for Persons with Intellectual Disabilities: Article 12 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities’ [2013] 41 The Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics 792-806. 🔒
Nandini Devi, Jerome Bickenbach and Gerold Stucki, ‘Moving towards substituted or supported decision-making? Article 12 of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities‘ [2011] 5(4) Alter 249-264.
Nandini Devi, Birgit Prodinger, Andrew Pennycott, Roja Sooben and Jerome Bickenbach, ‘Investigating Supported Decision-Making for Persons With Mild to Moderate Intellectual Disability Using Institutional Ethnography’ [2020] 17(2) Journal of Policy and Practice in Intellectual Disabilities 143-156. 🔒
Amita Dhanda, ‘Legal Capacity in the Disability Convention: Stranglehold of the Past or Lodestar for the Future’ [2007] 34(2) Syracuse Journal of International Law and Commerce 429-462.
Robert D Dinerstein, ‘Implementing Legal Capacity Under Article 12 of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities: The Difficult Road From Guardianship to Supported Decision-Making‘ [2012] 19(2) Human Rights Brief 8-12.
Robert Dinerstein, Esmd Grant Grewal and Jonathan Martinis, ‘Emerging International Trends and Practices in Guardianship Law for People with Disabilities‘ [2016] 22(2) ILSA Journal ofInternational & Comparative Law 436-460.
Jacinta Douglas and Christine Bigby, ‘Development of an evidence-based practice framework to guide decision making support for people with cognitive impairment due to acquired brain injury or intellectual disability‘ [2020] 42(3) Disability and Rehabilitation 434-441.
Leslie P Francis, ‘Forms of Equality, Faces of Discrimination: CRPD Article 5, Article 12, and the Disability’s Difference Debate’ in Franziska Felder, Laura Davy and Rosemary Kayess (eds), Disability Law and Human Rights. Theory and Policy (Palgrave Macmillan 2022), 107-125.
Margaret Isabel Hall, ‘Putting the Pieces Together: Article 12, ‘Safeguarding’ and the Right to Legal Capacity’ in Mary Donnelly, Rosie Harding and Ezgi Taşcıoğlu (eds), Supporting Legal Capacity in Socio-Legal Context (Hart Publishing 2022), 273-290.
Rosie Harding, Mary Donnelly and Ezgi Taşcıoğlu, ‘Situating the Right to Enjoy Legal Capacity‘ in Mary Donnelly, Rosie Harding and Ezgi Taşcıoğlu (eds), Supporting Legal Capacity in Socio-Legal Context (Hart Publishing 2022), 1-16.
Rosie Harding, ‘Supporting Everyday Legal Capacity: Navigating the Complexities of Putting Rights into Practice’ in Mary Donnelly, Rosie Harding and Ezgi Taşcıoğlu (eds), Supporting Legal Capacity in Socio-Legal Context (Hart Publishing 2022), 291-314.
Israel Doron, ‘From National to International Elder Law’ [2005] 1 The Journal of International Aging, Law and Policy 43-67.
Israel Doron and Benny Spanier, ‘International Elder Law: The Future of Elder Law’ in Israel Doron and Ann M Soden (eds), Beyond Elder Law: New Directions in Law and Ageing (Springer 2012), 125-148.
Benoît Eyraud, Julie Minoc, Cécile Hanon (eds), Choisir et agir pour autrui ?: Controverse autour de la Convention de l’ONU relative aux droits des personnes handicapées (Doin 2018).
Silvia Favalli, Disabilità, diritti umani e diritto internazionale (Giuffrè 2021). 📚
Delia Ferri and Andrea Broderick (eds), Research Handbook on EU Disability Law (Edward Elgar Publishing Limited 2020).
Eilionóir Flynn, ‘Making human rights meaningful for people with disabilities: advocacy, access to justice and equality before the law’ [2013] 17(4) The International Journal of Human Rights 491-510. 🔒
Eilionóir Flynn, ‘The rejection of capacity assessments in favour of respect for will and preferences: The radical promise of the UN convention on the rights of persons with disabilities‘ [2019] 18(1) World Psychiatry 50-51.
Eilionóir Flynn and Anna Arstein-Kerslake, ‘Legislating personhood: realising the right to support in exercising legal capacity’ [2014] 10(1) International Journal of Law in Context 81-104. 🔒
Eilionóir Flynn and Anna Arstein-Kerslake, ‘The Support Model of Legal Capacity: Fact, Fiction, or Fantasy’ [2014] 32(1) Berkeley Journal of International Law 124-143.
Melvyn Colin Freeman, Kavitha Kolappa, Jose Miguel Caldas de Almeida, Arthur Kleinman, Nino Makhashvili, Sifiso Phakathi, Benedetto Saraceno and Graham Thornicroft, ‘Reversing hard won victories in the name of human rights: a critique of the General Comment on Article 12 of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities’ [2015] 2(9) The Lancet Psychiatry 844-850.
Neeraj Gill and Norman Sartorius (eds), Mental Health and Human Rights. The Challenges of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities to Mental Health Care (Springer 2024).
Kristin Booth Glen, ‘Supported Decision-Making and the Human Right of Legal Capacity’ [2015] 3(1) Inclusion 2-16. 🔒
Piers Gooding, ‘Supported Decision-Making: A Rights-Based Disability Concept and its Implications for Mental Health Law’ [2013] 20(3) Psychiatry, Psychology and Law 431-451.
Piers Gooding, ‘Navigating the “Flashing Amber Lights” of the Right to Legal Capacity in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities: Responding to Major Concerns’ [2015] 15(1) Human Rights Law Review 45-71.
Piers Gooding, A New Era for Mental Health Law and Policy. Supported Decision-Making and the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (Cambridge University Press 2017). 🔒
Sigrid Graumann, ‘Human dignity and people with disabilities’ in Marcus Düwell, Jens Braarvig, Roger Brownsword and Dietmar Mieth (eds), The Cambridge Handbook of Human Dignity: interdisciplinary perspectives (Cambridge University Press 2014), 484-491. 🔒
Ugnė Gudelytė, Jonas Ruškus and Katherine Tyson McCrea, ‘”Help me to decide”: A study of human rights-based supported decision making with persons with intellectual disabilities’ [2024] 94(3) American Journal of Orthopsychiatry 297-310. 🔒
Oliver Hallich, ‘Prolonged Autonomy? The Principle of Precedent Autonomy and the Binding Force of Advance Directives in Dementia’ in Michael Kühler and Veselin L Mitrović (eds), Theories of the Self and Autonomy in Medical Ethics (Springer 2020), 147-171.
Rosie Harding and Ezgi Taşcıoğlu, ‘Supported Decision-Making from Theory to Practice: Implementing the Right to Enjoy Legal Capacity‘ [2018] 8(2) Societies 25-43.
Paul Harpur, ‘Embracing the new disability rights paradigm: the importance of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities’ [2012] 27(1) Disability & Society 1-14.
Jonathan Herring, Vulnerable Adults and the Law (Oxford University Press 2016). 🔒
Willene Holness, ‘Equal Recognition and Legal Capacity for Persons with Disabilities: Incorporating the Principle of Proportionality’ [2014] 30(2) South African Journal on Human Rights 313-344.
Agnieszka Jaworska, ‘Assisted Autonomy in Dementia’ in Ben Colburn (ed), The Routledge Handbook of Autonomy (Routledge 2022), 450-460. 🔒
Katja Karjalainen, ‘Strengthening the Right to Personal Autonomy and Protection of Vulnerable Adults: from Human Rights to Domestic and European legislation on Voluntary Measures‘ in Katja Karjalainen, Iina Tornberg, Aleksi Pursiainen (eds), International Actors and the Formation of Laws (Springer 2022), 65-88.
Rosemary Kayess and Phillip French, ‘Out of Darkness into Light? Introducing the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities’ [2008] 8(1) Human Rights Law Review 1-34.
Amanda Keeling, ‘The Problem of Influence: Autonomy, Legal Capacity and the Risk of Theoretical Incoherence’ in Mary Donnelly, Rosie Harding and Ezgi Taşcıoğlu (eds), Supporting Legal Capacity in Socio-Legal Context (Hart Publishing 2022), 39-56.
Mary Keys, ‘Legal Capacity Law Reform in Europe: An Urgent Challenge’ in Gerard Quinn, Lisa Waddington and Eilionóir Flynn (eds), European Yearbook of Disability Law (vol. 1 Intersentia 2009), 59-88. 🔒
Lucy Knox, Jacinta M Douglas and Christine Bigby, ‘Becoming a decision-making supporter for someone with acquired cognitive disability following traumatic brain injury’ [2015] 3(1) Research and Practice in Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities 12-21.
Nina A Kohn and Jeremy A Blumenthal, ‘A critical assessment of supported decision-making for persons aging with intellectual disabilities’ [2014] 7(1 Suppl) Disability and Health Journal S40-S43. 🔒
Camillia Kong, ‘The Convention for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and Article 12: Prospective Feminist Lessons against the “Will and Preferences” Paradigm’ [2015] 4(4) Laws 709-728.
Camillia Kong, Mental Capacity in Relationship. Decision-Making, Dialogue, and Autonomy (Cambridge University Press 2017).
Camillia Kong, ‘The Significance of Strong Evaluation and Narrativity in Supporting Capacity’ in Mary Donnelly, Rosie Harding and Ezgi Taşcıoğlu (eds), Supporting Legal Capacity in Socio-Legal Context (Hart Publishing 2022), 57-74.
Richard Ladner, ‘The impact of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities’ [2014] 57(3) Communications of the ACM 30-32.
Poland Lai, ‘Autonomous care decisions: what can Article 12 of the CRPD offer to older disabled adults and their supporters?‘ [2023] 38(8) Disability and Society 1502-1507.
Anna Lawson, ‘The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with disabilities: New Era or False Dawn?’ [2007] 34(2) Syracuse Journal of International Law and Commerce 563-619. 🔒
Anna Lawson and Caroline Gooding (eds), Disability Rights in Europe: From Theory to Practice (Hart Publishing 2005). 🔒
Bridget Lewis, Kelly Purser and Kirsty Mackie, The Human Rights of Older Persons. A Human Rights-Based Approach to Elder Law (Springer 2020).
Hallvard Lillehammer, ‘Autonomy and Mental Health’ in Ben Colburn (ed), The Routledge Handbook of Autonomy (Routledge 2022), 432-441. 🔒
Volker Lipp, ‘Erwachsenenschutz, gesetzliche Vertretung und Artikel 12 UN-BRK’ in Valentin Aichele (ed), Das Menschenrecht auf gleiche Anerkennung vor dem Recht (Nomos 2013), 329-354.
Antonio Martinez-Pujalte, ‘Legal Capacity and Supported Decision-Making: Lessons from Some Recent Legal Reforms’ [2019] 8(1) Laws 4 ss.
Bernadette McSherry, ‘Legal Capacity Under the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities’ [2012] 2012(20) Journal of Law and Medicine 22-27.
Frédéric Mégret, ‘The Disabilities Convention: Human Rights of Persons with Disabilities or Disability Rights?‘ [2008] 30 Human Rights Quarterly 494-516.
Jerzy Menkes, ‘Legal-international analysis of Article 12 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities: the impact of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties and the International Bill of Human Rights‘ in Maciej Domański and Bogusław Lackoroński (eds), Models of Implementation of Article 12 of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD). Private and Criminal Law Aspects (Routledge 2024).
Fiona Morrissey, ‘The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities: A New Approach to Decision-Making in Mental Health Law’ [2012] 19 European Journal of Health Law 423-440. 🔒
Hajrija Mujović, ‘A Patient’s Right to Refuse Medical Treatment Through the Implementation of Advance Directives’ in Michael Kühler and Veselin L Mitrović (eds), Theories of the Self and Autonomy in Medical Ethics (Springer 2020), 137-145.
National University of Ireland (NUI) Galway Centre for Disability Law and Policy, ‘A study on the Equal Recognition before the law. Contribution towards the Council of Europe Strategy on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities‘ (2017) Council of Europe.
Martha C Nussbaum, Creating Capabilities: The Human Development Approach (Harvard University Press 2011). 🔒
Robert S Olick, ‘On the Scope and Limits of Advance Directives and Prospective Autonomy’ in Peter Lack, Nikola Biller-Andorno and Susanne Brauer (eds), Advance Directives (Springer 2014), 53-72.
Isabella Paoletti, ‘Dignity and the Fourth Age’ in Edward Sieh and Judy McGregor (eds), Human Dignity. Establishing Worth and Seeking Solutions (Palgrave Macmillan London 2020), 61-81.
Alex L Pearl, ‘Article 12 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and the Legal Capacity of Disabled People: The Way Forward?’ [2013] 1(1) Leeds Journal of Law and Criminology 1-30. 🔒
Andrew Peterson, Jason Karlawish and Emily A Largent, ‘Supported Decision Making with People at the Margins of Autonomy: Response to Commentaries‘ [2022] 22(1) The American Journal of Bioethics W1-W4.
Laura Pritchard-Jones, ‘Exploring the potential and the pitfalls of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and General Comment no. 1 for people with dementia’ [2019] 66 International Journal of Law and Psychiatry 1-9. 🔒
Shivaun Quinlivan, ‘The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities: an introduction’ [2012] 13(1) ERA Forum 71-85.
Nathy Rass-Masson, Agnieszka Markowska, Daniela Cinova, Flore Gustave, Emmanuel Hassan, Marco Paron Trivellato, Pietro Franzina and Ian Sumner, ‘Civil aspects of the cross-border protection of vulnerable adults – Final report‘ (2022) Directorate-General for Justice and Consumers Directorate A: Civil and commercial justice (European Commission).
Diego Rodríguez-Pinzón and Claudia Martin, ‘The International Human Rights Status of Elderly Persons‘ [2003] 18(4) American University International Law Review 915-1008.
Sonia E Rolland and Alex Ruck Keene, ‘Study commissioned by the Special Rapporteur on the rights of persons with disabilities – Interpreting the 2000 Hague Convention on the International Protection of Adults Consistently with the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities‘ (2021).
Karrie A Shogren and Michael L Wehmeyer, ‘A Framework for Research and Intervention Design in Supported Decision-Making’ [2015] 3(1) Inclusion 17-23. 🔒
Matthé Scholten and Jakov Gather, ‘Adverse consequences of article 12 of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities for persons with mental disabilities and an alternative way forward’ [2018] 44 Journal of Medical Ethics 226-233.
Matthé Scholten, Jakov Gather and Jochen Vollmann, ‘Equality in the Informed Consent Process: Competence to Consent, Substitute Decision-Making, and Discrimination of Persons with Mental Disorders‘ [2021] 46(1) The Journal of Medicine and Philosophy 108-136.
Francesco Seatzu, ‘La Convenzione delle Nazioni Unite sui diritti delle persone disabili: i principi fondamentali’ [2008] 2008(3) Diritti umani e diritto internazionale 535-559. 🔒
Lucy Series, ‘Relationships, autonomy and legal capacity: Mental capacity and support paradigms’ [2015] 40 International Journal of Law and Psychiatry 80-91. 🔒
Lucy Series and Anna Nilsson, ‘Article 12: Equal Recognition before the Law’ in Ilias Bantekas, Michael Ashley Stein, and Dimitris Anastasiou (eds), The UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. A Commentary (Oxford University Press 2018), 339-382. 🔒
Karrie A Shogren, ‘Self-Determination, Preference, and Choice’ in Roger J Stancliffe, Michael L Wehmeyer, Karrie A Shogren, Brian H Abery (eds), Choice, Preference, and Disability. Promoting Self-Determination Across the Lifespan (Springer 2020), 27-43.
Karrie A Shogren, ‘Special Issue on Supported Decision-Making: Advancing Policy and Practice’ [2024] 3(3) Inclusive Practices 51-53. 🔒
Karrie A Shogren, Michael L Wehmeyer, Heather Lassmann and Anjali J Forber-Pratt, ‘Supported Decision Making: A Synthesis of the Literature across Intellectual Disability, Mental Health, and Aging’ [2017] 52(2) Education and Training in Autism and Developmental Disabilities 144-157. 🔒
Karrie A Shogren, Michael L Wehmeyer, Jonathan Martinis and Peter Blanck, Supported Decision-Making: Theory, Research, and Practice to Enhance Self-Determination and Quality of Life (Cambridge University Press 2018). 🔒
Magenta B Simmons and Piers Gooding, ‘Spot the difference: shared decision-making and supported decision-making in mental health‘ [2017] 34 Irish Journal of Psychological Medicine 275-286.
Paul Skowron, ‘Giving substance to ‘the best interpretation of will and preferences’‘ [2019] 62 International Journal of Law and Psychiatry 125-134.
Roger J Stancliffe, ‘Choice Availability and People with Intellectual Disability’ in Roger J Stancliffe, Michael L Wehmeyer, Karrie A Shogren, Brian H Abery (eds), Choice, Preference, and Disability. Promoting Self-Determination Across the Lifespan (Springer 2020), 3-26.
Tilman Steinert, ‘The UN Committee’s interpretation of “will and preferences” can violate human rights’ [2019] 18(1) World Psychiatry 45-46.
George Szmukler, ‘“Capacity”, “best interests”, “will and preferences” and the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities‘ [2019] 18(1) World Psychiatry 34-41.
Shih-Ning Then, Terry Carney, Christine Bigby and Jacinta Douglas, ‘Supporting decision-making of adults with cognitive disabilities: The role of Law Reform Agencies – Recommendations, rationales and influence’ [2018] 61 International Journal of Law and Psychiatry 64-75.
Marie-Jo Thiel, ‘Personal Capacity to Anticipate Future Illness and Treatment Preferences’ in Peter Lack, Nikola Biller-Andorno and Susanne Brauer (eds), Advance Directives (Springer 2014), 17-36.
Sara Tonolo, ‘International Human Rights Law and the Protection of the Elderly in Europe‘ [2018] 11(2) Medicine, Law & Society 107-120.
Lisa Waddington and Andrea Broderick, ‘Promoting Equality and Non-Discrimination for Persons with Disabilities‘ (2017) Council of Europe.
Lisa Waddington and Andrea Broderick, ‘Combatting disability discrimination and realising equality. A comparison of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and EU equality and non-discrimination law‘ (2018) Directorate-General for Justice and Consumers (European Commission).
Lisa Waddington and Anna Lawson (eds), The UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in Practice. A Comparative Analysis of the Role of Courts (Oxford University Press 2018). 🔒
Joanne Watson, ‘Assumptions of Decision-Making Capacity: The Role Supporter Attitudes Play in the Realisation of Article 12 for People with Severe or Profound Intellectual Disability‘ [2016] 5(1) Laws 6 ss.
Paul Webb, Gavin Davidson, Rosalie Edge, David Falls, Fionnuala Keenan, Berni Kelly, Aisling McLaughlin, Lorna Montgomery, Christine Mulvenna, Barbara Norris, Aine Owens and Rebecca Shea Irvine, ‘Key components of supporting and assessing decision making ability’ [2020] 72 International Journal of Law and Psychiatry 101613.🔒
Penny Weller, ‘Supported Decision-Making and the Achievement of Non-Discrimination: The Promise and Paradox of the Disabilities Convention’ [2008] 26(2) Law in Context: A Socio-Legal Journal 85-110.

5. Other UN documents

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, ‘Annual Report, Right to access to justice under article 13 of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities’ (2017) UN Doc. A/HRC/37/25, available in English, French, Spanish, Arabic, Chinese and Russian.
UN Special Rapporteur on the rights of persons with disabilities (Gerard Quinn) and Independent Expert on the enjoyment of all human rights by older persons (Claudia Mahler), ‘Towards Greater Coherence of International Law. Reflections on the adequacy of the European Commission’s proposal for a Regulation and Council Decision governing the Hague Convention on the Protection of Adults‘, Joint Submission, 2 August 2023.
CRPD Committee, Special Rapporteur on the rights of persons with disabilities and Special Envoy of the Secretary-General on Disability and Accessibility, ‘International Principles and Guidelines on Access to Justice for Persons with Disabilities‘ (2020).

6. NGOs and civil society initiatives

Age UK, ‘Safeguarding older people from abuse and neglect‘ (2023).
Associazione nazionale di famiglie e persone con disabilità intellettive e disturbi del neurosviluppo (Anffas), Capacity: la Legge è eguale per tutti! – Modelli e strumenti innovativi di sostegni per la presa di decisioni e per la piena inclusione sociale delle persone con disabilità intellettive: project and toolkit for operators and stakeholders.
Fabiana Scarano, Irene Bertana and Konstantina Leventi, ‘Legal Capacity and Supported Decision-Making. Position Paper‘ (2023) European Association of Service providers for Persons with Disabilities (EASPD).
Human Rights Commission (HRC) of the International Union of Notaries (UINL), ‘Notarial Guide of Good Practices for People with Disabilities: the notary as an institutional support and public authority‘ (2023).
Inclusion Europe, ‘The Right to make decisions‘ (2018).
International Guardianship Network, Yokohama Declaration, First World Congress on Adult Guardianship Law, 4 October 2010.

7. Useful websites

Regional Human Rights instruments

European system

European Union

Council of Europe

Inter-American system

African system

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