Recent legislative developments such as the enactment of the Disability Discrimination Act 2005 and the publication of the Equality Act 2006 (which will create a single Commission for Equality and Human Rights), highlight that equality law is a vast and growing area. European law now covers gender, sexuality, religion, age, disability and race. New domestic law has increased the scope of the Race Relations Act, the Sex Discrimination Act and the Disability Discrimination Act to cover the functions of public authorities and to introduce positive duties upon them. In addition, new legislation regulates discrimination on the grounds of religion, belief and sexual orientation and age. More and more lawyers across a wide range of practice areas need to get to grips with equality law. This new book offers a comprehensive survey of UK equality law. It provides an examination and critique of the current legal framework, including its underlying concepts and the history of protection against discrimination, and looks at equality law's application to a wide range of specific areas such as employment, goods and services, housing, education, and public law.It also examines the scope of protection in domestic, European and ECHR law, and includes chapters on defences and exemptions, procedures and remedies. Written by a leading barrister in equality and human rights work, this book is an invaluable reference for the practitioner seeking a deeper understanding of the issues and concepts behind our equality laws, as well as for students and academics interested in this rapidly evolving area.