On this day — 1897: Hersch Lauterpacht is born

Today marks the 120th anniversary of the birth of Hersch Lauterpacht, who defined ‘crimes against humanity’ one of the crimes under which the surviving Nazis were charged at the Nuremberg Trials.

On 16 August, 1897 Lauterpacht was born in Lviv in the Austro-Hungarian Empire, now in Ukraine. He studied law and became a scholar and judge. He was called upon to assist in the prosecution of the Nazis after the War, with his work ultimately contributing to the European Convention on Human Rights.

His story and those of other key figures have been highlighted by Professor Philippe Sands QC in his award-winning book East West Street.

Kapil Summan spoke to Professor Sands about his book last year.