This book marks a departure from past studies. Kirsten Young focuses attention, not on the Committee's interpretation of the substantive provisions of the Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, but on how the Committee functions as a decision-making body. Few scholars have considered in such detail the actual operation of this important body, which has attempted to secure compliance with fundamental civil and political rights for a quarter of a century. The appearance of this study is a testament to the pivotal role the Committee plays in the protection of human rights and to the maturation of the United Nations human rights treaty regime. The problems identified by the author should be of concern to human rights scholars and activists, as well as to the Committee itself and to states parties. The Committee exercises several different types of authority, including review of periodic state reports and consideration of individual communications under the first Optional Protocol. Ms Young examines the Committee's performance in light of the principle of legality (whether the Committee is empowered to make the decisions that it does) and the principle of legitimacy (whether the Committee's processes are fair). In considering the principle of legitimacy, Ms Young analyses the Committee's impartiality and independence, its management of scarce resources, and the transparency of its procedures.