'Sex trafficking and prostitution markets- the limits of clients' responsibility'

Professor Keren-Paz delivered a guest lecture in the Stuart Mill College for the bachelor Philosophy, Politics and Economics, Vrije University, Amsterdam on clients' liability in the prostitution markets.

Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam

The lectures ‘Sex trafficking and prostitution markets - the limits of clients' responsibility’ were part of a ‘Policy Lab’ course and were based on his 2013 monograph Sex Trafficking: A Private Law Response (Routledge 2013) and his 2019 (co-authored with Richard Wright) article ‘Liability for Mass Sexual Abuse’ (2019) 56 American Criminal Law Review 185-233.  

In these lectures Professor Tsachi Keren-Paz defended a regime imposing civil liability on clients who purchase sex in markets whose supply chain include victims of sex trafficking. He focused on the more difficult case in which a client did not have direct contact with the victim. He argued for liability based on a novel (and controversial) theory of contribution to exploitative demand which led to the victim being trafficked. This necessitates establishing duty of care, breach and causation to the damage, all of which are contested. Professor Keren-Paz also examined the scope of liability of viewers of child pornography to victims, litigated in  US v Paroline (2014) and more recently, the subject of the  Amy, Vicky, and Andy Child Pornography Victim Assistance Act of 2018.

The lectures were attended, among others, by members of 'Crimson Court', a Dutch organisation helping people in prostitution and by PGR's and Post-Docs researching human trafficking. 

Centres of excellence

The University's cross-faculty research centres harness our interdisciplinary expertise to solve the world's most pressing challenges.