Judicial compliance in the regional human rights systems

This chapter examines the role of courts in securing compliance with international human rights law, focusing on the European and Inter-American systems of human rights. It deals with the question of how far can compliance be achieved regardless of the involvement of a State’s political branches of government, especially in those cases where the violation of the Convention has its roots in a country’s legislation. It first examines the legal arrangements and techniques that allow courts to play a role in securing compliance with international human rights law, like the legal status of human rights treaties in the domestic legal order and the organization of the judiciary. Then it explores potential and limits of judicial compliance examining cases of successful judicial compliance as well as examples testifying to the limits courts are facing in implementing international human rights law. Finally, it discusses the forms of judicial dialogue, trying to distinguish between an acceptable disagreement among courts from a mere judicial endorsement of a State’s refusal to comply which undermines the authority of international human rights law.