The Winter 2021 issue of Studies is mostly given over to a set of essays on government action relating to the pandemic and the legal and human rights issues it has raised. The authors of these essays are all associated with the School of Law, Trinity College Dublin. In mid-2020, the School established the COVID-19 Law and Human Rights Observatory in order to provide academic commentary on Ireland’s legal response to COVID-19 as it evolved. “Universities play a vital role in ensuring that laws are effective,” the Observatory notes on its website, “but also that rights and fundamental freedoms are protected insofar as possible, even in emergency circumstances.” Since then the Observatory has amassed a substantial body of material – blogposts, articles, reports, working papers, and podcasts.

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