Human Rights Flashcards
When can a UK citizen approach the European Court of Human Rights under the ECHR?
Once they have exhausted the legal process in the UK
The Human Rights Act, 1998, distinguishes three categories of rights, what are they?
- Absolute
- Limited
- Qualified
What are absolute rights?
Rights that cannot be limited by state
Can absolute rights be limited by the state during war or national emergencies, or balanced against needs of public interest or other individuals?
No
What are the absolute rights?
- Life
- Prohibition of torture
- Prohibition of slavery and servitude
- Prohibition of retrospective criminal offences
What are limited rights?
A right whose scope can be limited only in the article itself
What are the limited rights?
- LIberty and security
- Fair trial
When can the limited right to liberty and security be limited?
- Detention of criminal convicts
- Arrest/detention for failure to comply with court order
- Arrest/detention someone REASONABLY SUSPECTED having committed a crime OR REASONABLY NECESSARY to prevent the committing of the offence
- Detention of a person to prevent spreading infectious diseases / mentally ill persons
What are qualified rights?
Rights that can be limited to PURSUE A LEGITIMATE INTEREST as outline in the article
Name some qualified rights?
- Freedom of Expression
- Freedom of assembly and association
How is the qualified right to freedom of expression limited?
To the extent necessary in a democratic society to achieve the following aims:
1. National security
2. Territorial integrity
3. Public safety
4. Prevention of disorder/crime
5. Protection of health or morals
How is the the qualified right to freedom of assembly and association limited?
Restrictions as are necessary to achieve the following aims:
1. National Security
2. Prevention of disorder or crime
3. Protection of health or morals
4. Protection of rights and freedoms of others
Explain the three-part proportionality test used to restrict a qualified right?
A Is the policy and legitimate aim sufficiently important to justify the limitation
- Does the measure meet the objective and is rationally connected to it?
- Is the limitation no more than necessary to accomplish the objective
- Is the measure reasonable and balanced, given the competing needs of individual and community
What is judicial deference?
When courts defer to parliament for politically controversial issues. The more deference applied, the less argument and evidence required to show proportionality of a measureW
In what matters are courts usually more deferential?
Issues of national security
What is the “margin of appreciation” and who applies it?
The European Court of Human Rights allows a state some discretion in limiting qualified rights, depending on how all other states view that right
Explain the two margins of appreciation?
- Narrow - where most states have a common approach, the court applies a narrow margin
- Wife - where each state approaches the issue differently
What test will the European Court of Human Rights use when applying a narrow margin of appreciation?
Proportionality + whether the discretion was exercised carefully and in good faith
What is the “living instrument principle” of the ECHR and what are its three principles:
The meaning of the ECHR changes according to socio-economic conditions:
- European Court is not bound by previous decisions
- European Court can choose to follow an approach adopted by some/all states on an issue/right
- European Court must be accessible to all individuals