European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR)
The is NOT an EU institution. It sits in Strasbourg as part of the Council of Europe (47 member states at the time of writing, including the UK), and oversees the - founded 1959. It hears individual and inter-state applications; its judgments are binding on the states concerned, but it cannot overrule national decisions, annul national laws, or enforce its own rulings (enforcement passes to the Council of Europe). Article 8 ECHR protects private and family life and has been the basis for its data protection case law.
The ECtHR sits in Strasbourg as part of the Council of Europe (47 states, including the UK and many non-EU states). It is separate from the EU institutions and must not be confused with the European Council or the Council of the European Union. It oversees the ECHR, not EU law.
Founded in 1959, the ECtHR examines complaints (applications) and delivers binding judgments. It hears (1) individual applications (from any person, group, company or NGO) and (2) inter-state applications. Almost all applications are lodged by individuals alleging a personal, direct violation by a contracting state.
- Judgments are final and binding on the states party to the case
- BUT the ECtHR cannot overrule national decisions or annul national laws, and has no power of enforcement - supervising execution and ensuring compensation passes to the Council of Europe
- It may afford just satisfaction to an injured party where internal law allows only partial reparation
- Each case is considered by a chamber of seven judges; no two judges may be nationals of the same state
- Article 8 ECHR protects private and family life but does not specifically address data protection - yet has grounded an active body of privacy case law
| Case | Outcome |
|---|---|
| Bouchacourt / Gardel / M.B. v France (2009) | Inclusion in the national sex offenders police database was NOT contrary to Article 8 |
| MM v UK (2012) | Indiscriminate, open-ended collection of criminal record data is unlikely to comply with Article 8 without clear safeguards |
| Copland v UK (2007) | Monitoring an employee's workplace email breached Article 8 as no law provided for it |
| Gaskin v UK (1989) | Restricting access to one's own personal file breached Article 8 |
| Haralambie v Romania (2009) | Obstacles to accessing a secret service file breached Article 8 |
| Big Brother Watch v UK (2021) | Aspects of UK bulk interception (RIPA) breached Articles 8 and 10 |