The name Guy S Goodwin-Gill is synonymous with international refugee law. Since his first seminal work in 1978 on the subject, he has been an intellectual pioneer in identifying, mapping, and shaping this area of law. To mark his formal retirement, this article surveys Professor Goodwin-Gill's contribution to international refugee law scholarship and practice over the past four decades. It argues that Professor Goodwin-Gill is the consummate international refugee law scholar precisely because his career has encompassed more than scholarship alone. His years with UNHCR, his engagement with non-governmental organizations, and his advocacy in the courts, parliamentary committees, and beyond have informed his understanding of protection and the role that law can play in ameliorating the conditions in which refugees and asylum seekers find themselves. Professor Goodwin-Gill's research is underpinned by a deep commitment to human rights and social justice, and steeped in impeccable black letter law techniques of systematic, forensic analysis and attention to detail, which are essential to its authority and credibility. He has challenged established modes of thinking and been able to advocate for change in a principled, defensible manner. His legacy has been to create a field of scholarship and a global community of scholars which is well integrated with the legion of refugee law practitioners around the world. © The Author (2016). Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved.

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social justice refugee biography international law nongovernmental organization human rights asylum seeker