The European Convention of Human Rights Act 2003 is an act of the Irish parliament, the Oireachtas, which gave further effect to the

European Convention on Human Rights The European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR; formally the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms) is an international convention to protect human rights and political freedoms in Europe. Drafted in 1950 by ...

in Irish law. It is substantially similar to the UK's Human Rights Act 1998. The Act did not

incorporate Incorporation may refer to: * Incorporation (business), the creation of a corporation * Incorporation of a place, creation of municipal corporation such as a city or county * Incorporation (academic), awarding a degree based on the student having ...

the convention into Irish law, but rather requires the courts to interpret legislation in line with the convention insofar as it is possible to do so, and requires certain public bodies to perform their functions in a manner compatible with the convention, unless precluded by law. The Act also provides that courts may make a declaration of incompatibility regarding a breach of a convention right, but unlike a declaration that a law is repugnant to the

constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed. When these princ ...

, a declaration of incompatibility has no effect on the continued validity and enforcement of that law.

Main provisions

Section 2 of the Act requires that, subject to the existing rules of statutory interpretation, the Courts should apply both

common law rules Common may refer to: Places * Common, a townland in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland * Boston Common, a central public park in Boston, Massachusetts * Cambridge Common, common land area in Cambridge, Massachusetts * Clapham Common, originally com ...

and statutory provisions so that they are compatible with the convention. Section 3 requires that, subject to any other provisions of domestic law, 'organs of state' must perform their duties in a manner compatible with the convention. Anyone who suffers injury, loss or damage as a result such a body's failure to do this is entitled to damages. Section 1 defines an organ of state as a tribunal or any other body established or any body through which the powers of the State are exercised. Section 5 of the Act grants to the courts the power to make a declaration that a statutory provision or common law rule is incompatible with the convention. Such a declaration does not render the law in question invalid, rather the

Taoiseach The Taoiseach is the head of government, or prime minister, of Ireland. The office is appointed by the president of Ireland upon the nomination of Dáil Éireann (the lower house of the Oireachtas, Ireland's national legislature) and the o ...

is obliged to bring any such declaration to the attention of both Dáil and

Seanad Éireann Seanad Éireann (, ; "Senate of Ireland") is the upper house of the Oireachtas (the Irish legislature), which also comprises the President of Ireland and Dáil Éireann (the lower house). It is commonly called the Seanad or Senate and its memb ...

. A litigant who has been granted a declaration of incompatibility may receive monetary compensation in accordance with the principles of just satisfaction under Article 41 of the convention, but the award of such compensation is entirely within the discretion of the

Government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is ...

. The Convention itself is set out in Schedules 1-4 of the Act.

Important Case Law

Carmody v Minister for Justice

'' Carmody v Minister for Justice'' was decision of the High Court and the first major case to deal with the new legislation. Carmody was a farmer who had been charged with a number of offences under the Diseases of Animals Act 1966. He challenged the State's failure to provide him with free legal aid, claiming that it was contrary to both the

Constitution of Ireland The Constitution of Ireland ( ga, Bunreacht na hÉireann, ) is the fundamental law of Ireland. It asserts the national sovereignty of the Irish people. The constitution, based on a system of representative democracy, is broadly within the traditi ...

and the

. In her judgment, Ms. Justice Laffoy applied the

rule of avoidance The rule of avoidance was a rule employed in the Sui Dynasty in China which prohibited local officials from serving in their places of origin, so that family and friends would not influence them. A system similar to this was adopted by Emperor ...

and concluded that, in the absence of any express statement in the Act to the contrary, the court should rule on the Convention issue before examining its constitutionality. The plaintiff lost on both counts. This decision has been negatively received by some commentators.

References

{{Reflist

Fiona de Londras Fiona de Londras (born 1980) is an Irish academic and the Professor of Global Legal Studies at the University of Birmingham, UK. Since October 2019 she is also an honorary professor at the Australian National University in Canberra. Biography ...

& Cliona Kelly (2010) The European Convention on Human Rights Act: Operation, Impact and Analysis Dublin, Round Hall/Thomson Reuters.

External links

European Convention on Human Rights Act 2003
Irish Statute Book 2003 in Irish politics 2003 in Irish law Acts of the Oireachtas of the 2000s Human rights in Ireland Human rights legislation