International Tribunal Spotlight:
European Court of Human Rights (ECHR)
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Introduction
The European Court of Human Rights, located in Strasbourg, serves as the principal judicial mechanism in Europe and Eurasia for ensuring the observance of human rights obligations set forth in the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) and its Protocols.
All forty-six member states of the Council of Europe, an intergovernmental organization established to defend human rights, parliamentary democracy and the rule of law, are party to the Convention, which entered into force in 1953.
In the decades following its establishment in 1959, the Court played a limited yet still important role in verifying observance with the Convention and strengthening common standards for human rights protections in the region.
This role increased substantially in the mid-1990s as the emerging democracies and transitioning states of Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union joined the Council of Europe, acceded to the Convention, and became subject to the Court’s jurisdiction.
Partly because the legal and judicial systems of post-socialist countries suffered from considerable weaknesses, many individuals and organizations in these countries began seeking recourse and remedies from the Court in Strasbourg.
As awareness of and familiarity with the Court has grown, so too has its caseload and the overall length of proceedings.
From 1998 to 2004, for instance, the number of new applications increased from 18,200 to 44,100. By 2006, more than 80,000 cases were pending before the Court, of which 7,000 had been awaiting resolution for at least 3 years.
This phenomenon has prompted a variety of reform measures such as a new Protocol (Protocol No. 14) aimed at maintaining and improving the efficiency of the ECHR system and the creation of a Group of Wise Persons who are charged with developing additional proposals for ensuring the system’s long-term effectiveness.
Despite signs of serious strain, the Court is widely viewed as perhaps the most effective regional mechanism for protecting human rights and promoting the rule of law—and one who’s best practices are sometimes emulated by other human rights mechanisms around the world.
Structure and Composition
The Court is composed of a number of judges equal to the number of High Contracting States, i.e. the total number of Council of Europe member states. A list of the 46 judges currently serving on the Court is available here.
Judges sit in their individual capacities, not as representatives of any state, and will be elected by the Council of Europe’s Parliamentary Assembly for a single term of nine years, in accordance with Protocol 14. (Previously, judges have served a renewable six-year term.) Mandatory retirement for judges has also been set at age 70.
The Court is divided into five sections, each of which is constituted with an aim toward achieving gender balance and geographic representation among their members. Each section, in turn, includes a number of committees, which are comprised of three judges responsible for determining the admissibility of applications.
Applications deemed admissible are then referred to a chamber of seven judges who hold public hearings in one of the Court’s two official languages, i.e. English and French, in order to determine whether a violation of the Convention has occurred.
Judgments of a chamber are considered binding on the parties but are not considered final until three months following their delivery. Within this three-month period, a chamber judgment may be appealed to the 17-member Grand Chamber.
Grand Chamber judgments are considered final and binding under international law.
The Court’s Registry supports the judicial function of the committees, chambers, and Grand Chamber by providing legal and administrative assistance and by serving as the main communications channel for all cases brought before the Court.
The Registry is headed by a registrar and two deputy registrars, each of whom is elected by a plenary session of Court. It is staffed by approximately 500 employees, including some 200 legal secretaries (lawyers) who process applications, correspond with parties, and prepare cases for hearings.
Jurisdiction
The Court’s jurisdiction encompasses “all matters concerning the interpretation and application of the Convention and the Protocols thereto” and takes the form of both contentious and advisory jurisdiction.
The Court exercises contentious jurisdiction in reviewing applications from states and individuals who allege a violation of a Convention right or breach of a Convention obligation by a contracting party to the Convention.
The right of individual application provides any individual, groups of individuals, and non-governmental organizations with access to the Court and its human rights protections. It is viewed as the most distinctive feature of the ECHR system.
Before an application is accepted, applicants are required to exhaust all available domestic remedies and do so within six months of the final domestic decision in the matter.
Requests for advisory opinions may only be made by the Council of Europe’s Committee of Ministers and must be limited to legal questions concerning the interpretation of the Convention and its Protocols and may not involve interpretation of the rights and freedoms found therein.
Final judgments and decisions of the Court are binding on the parties to the case as noted above. Although judgments do not create a formal legal precedent, the Court does often follow its case law.
The Committee of Ministers supervises the execution of the Court’s judgments in order to ensure that just satisfaction through compensation to the victim and other measures is achieved. It is assisted in this effort by a specialized Department for the Execution of Judgments.
The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) has appointed a Rapporteur on the Implementation of Execution of Judgments to assist in enforcement of the Court’s judgments as well.
Cost/Budget
The Court does not have an independent budget. Rather, its budget is part of the overall budget of the Council of Europe, which is financed by member states and is approved by its Committee of Ministers.
The Court’s budget, which amounts to €44.189 million in 2006, is managed on a day-to-day basis by the Registrar. This amount is up from €40.5 million in 2004 and €34.9 million in 2003.
For More Information
European Court for Human Rights
Annual Surveys of ECHR Activity
Interim Report of the Group of Wise Persons to the Committee of Ministers
by Andrew Solomon, ASIL Director of Research and Outreach Programs
International
Judicial Monitor