Keenan and Riches’BUSINESS LAW

Chapter 2Law making

or other general emergency and which must not be
balanced with any public interest;
■limited rights(i.e. Arts 5 and 6) which are rights
which may be limited by provisions specified within
the Article or where the government can enter a de-
rogation, restricting the exercise of certain rights in
times of war or other public emergency;
■qualified rights(i.e. Arts 8 and 9) which are those
rights which may be limited or restricted provided the
interference with rights is prescribed by law, is done
to pursue a legitimate aim set out in the relevant
Article (e.g. prevention of crime, interest of national
security), the interference is necessary in a democratic
society by fulfilling a pressing social need, pursuing a
legitimate aim and is proportionate to the achieve-
ment of the aim.

Unlike the Universal Declaration on Human Rights,

the ECHR established institutions and procedures

for protecting the rights enshrined in the Convention.

The European Court of Human Rights, which sits at

Strasbourg, adjudicates on petitions brought by indi-

vidual citizens against a state and cases brought by one

state against another. Individual petitions may only

be brought to the court if the relevant state has accepted

the rights of its citizens to bring a petition and all

domestic remedies have been exhausted. The European

Commission on Human Rights is responsible for

ensuring that the individual petition is admissible and in

all cases trying to help the parties to resolve the dispute.

If an out-of-court settlement cannot be reached, the

case may be referred to the court. If the court decides

that a state is in breach of the ECHR, it can award

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Article Rights and freedoms Type of right

2 The right to life Absolute

3 Freedom from torture or inhuman or degrading treatment Absolute

4 Freedom from slavery and forced labour Absolute

5 The right to liberty and security of the person Limited

6 The right to a fair trial Limited

7 Protection from any retrospective effect of the criminal law Absolute

8 Right to respect for private and family life Qualified

9 Freedom of thought, conscience and religion Qualified

10 Freedom of expression Qualified

11 Freedom of assembly and association Qualified

12 The right to marry Qualified

13 The right to an effective remedy

14 The enjoyment of Convention rights without discrimination on the

grounds of sex, race, colour, language, religion, political or other

opinion, national or social origin, association with a national minority,

property, birth or other status

Protocol 1

1 The right to peaceful enjoyment of one’s possessions Qualified

2 The right to education Qualified

3 The right to free elections Qualified

Protocol 6

1 Abolition of the death penalty Qualified by Art 2

2 Death penalty in times of war

Figure 2.6The European Convention on Human Rights