Embargoed Access
Neither here nor there : responsibility for protecting trafficked migrants under European law
Loading...
Files
Embargoed until 2029
License
Cadmus Permanent Link
Full-text via DOI
ISBN
ISSN
Issue Date
Type of Publication
Keyword(s)
Other Topic(s)
EUI Research Cluster(s)
Initial version
Published version
Succeeding version
Preceding version
Published version part
Earlier different version
Initial format
Author(s)
Citation
Florence : European University Institute, 2025
EUI; LAW; PhD Thesis
Cite
TRAJER, John William, Neither here nor there : responsibility for protecting trafficked migrants under European law, Florence : European University Institute, 2025, EUI, LAW, PhD Thesis - https://hdl.handle.net/1814/78170
Abstract
The past two decades have witnessed a proliferation of European laws on trafficking in persons, together with increasing engagement with this phenomenon in the case law of the European Court of Human Rights and the Court of Justice of the European Union. These developments have helped consolidate the types of rights enjoyed by victims of this crime within the European space. At the same time, ambiguities persist in determining the conditions under which states are required to secure these rights, particularly when victims are identified in a country where they fail to satisfy the requirements for lawful residence. This challenge stems from the anti-trafficking laws themselves, which are marked throughout by a tension between promoting the wellbeing of victims and pursuing state interests in the sphere of immigration control. Against this backdrop, the thesis conducts a comprehensive analysis of the different constraints imposed on states’ immigration powers by European anti-trafficking rules and applicable human rights norms, focusing on how these shape access to protection and support for victims of this crime. The key contribution of the thesis lies in situating this analysis within a discussion of responsibility for securing the rights of trafficked migrants. Through this perspective, I develop arguments to suggest that states are precluded from exercising their powers of immigration control in a way that compromises the ability of victims to access appropriate protection and support, particularly when these rights cannot be exercised in another country. These claims, rooted in recent judicial and legislative developments at the European level, allow for a reappraisal of the complex interplay between immigration control, criminal justice, and victims’ rights in the anti-trafficking context, while also producing novel insights into ongoing protection challenges.
Table of Contents
Additional Information
Defence date: 28 February 2025
Examining Board: Prof. Neha Jain (European University Institute, Supervisor); Prof. Andrew Geddes (European University Institute, Co-Supervisor); Prof. Siobhán Mullally (University of Galway); Prof. Vladislava Stoyanova (Lund University)
Examining Board: Prof. Neha Jain (European University Institute, Supervisor); Prof. Andrew Geddes (European University Institute, Co-Supervisor); Prof. Siobhán Mullally (University of Galway); Prof. Vladislava Stoyanova (Lund University)