Presentation | The court | Systematic approach | Procedure

BRINGING A CASE BEFORE THE EUROPEAN COURT OF HUMAN RIGHTS

An action before the European Court of Human Rights can only be initiated under certain conditions, as stated in articles 34 and 35 of the Convention.

It is important to mention two of these conditions - all internal appeals have been tried and there is a six-month delay to initiate an action.

Using all internal appeals requires that applicants before the European Court of Human Rights have used ALL possible appeals open to them in the country which they are bringing to Court to remedy the violations of which they claim themselves victims.

The six-month delay is the period during which it is necessary to initiate an action before the European Court if it is to be acceptable. This delay begins after the last definitive internal decision (the last appeal possible under the National law).

An appeal before the European Court is open to each individual (regardless of his nationality),to every group of individuals, or to any non-governmental organization as long as there have been violations of the Convention by a signatory Nation.

Once the appeal has been filed, it receives a number and the procedure has begun. A judge is then appointed to examine the petition and the adjoining documents.
This judge can make comments to the applicant, or ask for further information during the time he has the file.


When the preliminary study is finished, the judge sends his report to the Court which decides what is to happen to the appeal.
For example, the court can decide to pass on the application to the defending Government for observations or decide that the application is unacceptable because of being unfounded, or disrespectful of the admissibility conditions.


At this stage, the applicant and the defending Government can formulate observations meant to enlighten the Court on the respective parties' arguments, as well as on the actual facts.
At the end of this first stage, the Court delivers a decision regarding the admissibility of the application. This puts an end to the examination of the admissibility conditions and, if judged admissible, a thorough examination of the file begins. If the petition was judged inadmissible, the procedure ends.


During the second stage, the Court may ask for more information, as well as clarifications on the introductory request. However, the Court will more likely begin a more thorough examination of the file.

The Court can then decide that a public audience will take place at the European Court, in Strasbourg to hear the claims of the two parties. The applicants can explain the circumstances that led to the application and directly name the violations of the Agreement.

A few months after this audience, the Court always delivers a decision which puts an end, most of the time, to the procedure in front of the European Court of Human Rights.

However, as most frequently happens, the applications are sent in the first stage to a section of the Chamber which then sends the files in the second stage to the Chamber itself which is composed of 7 judges.In certain cases, the section sends the case to the Big Chamber composed of 12 judges.


If the 7 judge Chamber decides there is no violation of the rights of the Convention, the applicant can appeal to the 12 judge Chamber,but only if he meets the conditions defined in the Court rules.

A hearing before the European Court of Human Rights is a medium-term commitment during which the plaintiff has ample time for his allegations to be heard. The procedure, adaptable to different situations and different implications, is such that every case is ensured of a concrete response, even if it is just the fact that the applicant is in opposition to a Council of Europe member state.