Stephen James Anaya is an American lawyer and the 16th Dean of the University of Colorado Boulder Law School. He was formerly the James J. Lenoir Professor of Human Rights Law and Policy at the

University of Arizona The University of Arizona (Arizona, U of A, UArizona, or UA) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Tucson, Arizona. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, it was the first ...

's James E. Rogers College of LawFaculty Profile, James Anaya, University of Arizona
and previousl
served for more than ten years
on the faculty at the

University of Iowa College of Law The University of Iowa College of Law is the law school of the University of Iowa, located in Iowa City, Iowa. It was founded in 1865. Iowa is ranked the 28th-best law school in the United States by the '' U.S. News & World Report'' "Best Law Sch ...

. In March 2008, he was appointed by the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoni ...

as its Special Rapporteur on the situation of the human rights and fundamental freedoms of

indigenous people Indigenous peoples are culturally distinct ethnic groups whose members are directly descended from the earliest known inhabitants of a particular geographic region and, to some extent, maintain the language and culture of those original people ...

, replacing

Rodolfo Stavenhagen Rodolfo Stavenhagen (29 August 1932 – 5 November 2016) was a German-born Mexican sociologist and anthropologist who specialized in the study of human rights and the political relations between indigenous peoples and states. He was a professor-r ...

. He was elected a Member of the

American Philosophical Society The American Philosophical Society (APS), founded in 1743 in Philadelphia, is a scholarly organization that promotes knowledge in the sciences and humanities through research, professional meetings, publications, library resources, and communit ...

in 2019.

Education and work

Anaya is a graduate of the

University of New Mexico The University of New Mexico (UNM; es, Universidad de Nuevo México) is a public research university in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Founded in 1889, it is the state's flagship academic institution and the largest by enrollment, with over 25,400 ...

(B.A., 1980) and

Harvard Law School Harvard Law School (Harvard Law or HLS) is the law school of Harvard University, a private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest continuously operating law school in the United States. Each c ...

(J.D., 1983). At Harvard Law School, he was a member of the Board of Student Advisers. He teaches and writes in the areas of international human rights,

constitutional law Constitutional law is a body of law which defines the role, powers, and structure of different entities within a state, namely, the executive, the parliament or legislature, and the judiciary; as well as the basic rights of citizens and, in fe ...

, and issues concerning

indigenous peoples Indigenous peoples are culturally distinct ethnic groups whose members are directly descended from the earliest known inhabitants of a particular geographic region and, to some extent, maintain the language and culture of those original people ...

. Anaya has served as a consultant for organizations and government agencies in numerous countries on matters of human rights and indigenous peoples, and he has represented indigenous groups from many parts of North and

Central America Central America ( es, América Central or ) is a subregion of the Americas. Its boundaries are defined as bordering the United States to the north, Colombia to the south, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. ...

in landmark cases before courts and international organizations. He was the lead counsel for the indigenous parties in the case of '' Awas Tingni v. Nicaragua'', in which the

Inter-American Court of Human Rights The Inter-American Court of Human Rights (IACHR or IACtHR) is an international court based in San José, Costa Rica. Together with the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, it was formed by the American Convention on Human Rights, a hum ...

for the first time upheld indigenous land rights as a matter of international law. In addition, he directed the legal team that successfully achieved a judgment by the Supreme Court of

Belize Belize (; bzj, Bileez) is a Caribbean and Central American country on the northeastern coast of Central America. It is bordered by Mexico to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and Guatemala to the west and south. It also shares a wa ...

affirming the traditional land rights of the

Maya people The Maya peoples () are an ethnolinguistic group of Indigenous peoples of the Americas, indigenous peoples of Mesoamerica. The ancient Maya civilization was formed by members of this group, and today's Maya are generally descended from people ...

of that country. On April 13, 2016, University of Colorado Boulder Provost Russell L. Moore announced the appointment of James (Jim) Anaya, Regents' Professor and James J. Lenoir Professor of Human Rights Law and Policy at the University of Arizona, as dean of the University of Colorado Boulder Law School. Anaya began his duties on August 8, 2016. Anaya stepped down from his role as Dean of Colorado Law School effective June 30, 2021. He remains a distinguished faculty member. Anaya is of

Apache The Apache () are a group of culturally related Native American tribes in the Southwestern United States, which include the Chiricahua, Jicarilla, Lipan, Mescalero, Mimbreño, Ndendahe (Bedonkohe or Mogollon and Nednhi or Carrizaleño a ...

and

Purépecha The Purépecha (endonym pua, P'urhepecha ) are a group of indigenous people centered in the northwestern region of Michoacán, Mexico, mainly in the area of the cities of Cherán and Pátzcuaro. They are also known by the pejorative " Tarascan ...

ancestry.

Selected publications

* * * * ''International Human Rights: Problems of Law, Policy, and Practice'' (4th ed. 2006) (co-authored with Richard B. Lillich, Hurst Hannun & Dinah L. Shelton) * ''The Protection of Indigenous Peoples' Rights Over Lands and Natural Resources Under the Inter-American Human Rights System'', 14 Harv. Hum. Rts. J. 33 (2001) (co-author with Robert A. Williams, Jr.). * ''The Native Hawaiian People and International Human Rights Law: Toward a Remedy for Past and Continuing Wrongs'', 28 Ga. L. Rev. 309 (1994), reprinted in International Law and Indigenous Peoples 309 (S. James Anaya ed., 2003). * ''A Contemporary Definition of the International Norm of Self-Determination'', 3 Transnat'l L. & Contemp. Probs. 131 (1993). A complete list of his academic publications to 2009 is available on the University of Arizona website.

References

External links

*
Office of the United Nations Office High Commissioner for Human Rights

Curriculum Vitae

Indigenous Peoples Law and Policy Program
* Harper, Samuel (1996

Accessed 17 August 2009 {{DEFAULTSORT:Anaya, James 1958 births Living people Place of birth missing (living people) American academic administrators American legal scholars American officials of the United Nations American people of Apache descent American people of Purépecha descent Harvard Law School alumni Indigenous rights activists International law scholars Deans of law schools in the United States Members of the American Philosophical Society American lawyers American academics Scholars of Native American law United Nations special rapporteurs University of Arizona faculty University of Colorado faculty University of Colorado Law School faculty University of New Mexico alumni