1. Department of Public & International Law, University of Oslo
How to Read a Case from the European Court of Human Rights and the UN Committee on Elimination of Discrimination Against Women
Cecilia M. Bailliet
Department of Public & International Law, University of Oslo

2. Opuz v. Turkey (ECtHR 2009)
Turn to the Last Page to read the Holding in order to identify which articles were addressed and create an outline.

3. Outline Identify applicant and respondent State
What is background for the claim?
Who is the third party intervener to the case?
What are the facts of the case?
What is role of the national judicial system? What is the position of the public prosecutor? The courts? The police? What penalization did courts order against H.O.?
Why do you think the applicant and her mother withdrew their complaints at the domestic level?
Have domestic remedies been exhausted?
What type of evidence is referred to in the case?

4. Outline- Sources
What protection standards exist at the national level?
What sources of international law does the Court refer to? Instruments- Hard and Soft Law, Case law from other Human Rights bodies (universal and regional)
Which other countries does Court examine to understand state practice regarding process in the event of withdrawal of complaint by victim?
Which NGO sources does the Court consult?

5. Admissibility
How does Court respond to State assertion of failure to observe the six month rule?
Read para. 111: «While there were intervals between the impungned events, the Court considers that the overall violence to which the applicant and her mother were subjected over a long period of time cannot be seen as individual and separate episodes and must therefore be considered together as a chain of connected events.»

6. Article 2- Right to Life
What is the claim of the applicant regarding State’s duty to protect te life of her mother?
How does the State Respond?
What protection standard does Interights introduce?
Which cases does the Court cite? What is the test for a positive obligation to protect the right to life arise?

7. Due Diligence
Para. 131 Whether the local authorities displayed due diligence to prevent violence against the applicant and her mother, in particular by pursuing criminal or other appropriate preventive measures against H.O. despite thw withdrawal of complaints by the victims?

8. Para. 132 Dicta- authoritative opinion
However, before embarking upon these issues, the Court must stress that the issue of domestic violence, which can take various forms ranging from physical to psychological violence or verbal abust, cannot be confined to the circumstances of the present case. It is a general problem which concerns all member States and which does not always surface since it often takes place within personal relationships or closed circuits and it is not only women who are affected. The Court acknowledges that men may also be victims of domestic violence, and, indeed that children, too, are often casualties of the phenomenon, whether directly or indirectly.

9. Foreseebility
Foreseebility of lethal attack- para. 136 While the Court cannot conclude with certainty that matters would have turned out differently and that the killing would not have occurred if the authorities had acted otherwise, it reiterates that a failure to take reasonable measures which could have a real prospect of altering the outcome or mitigating the harm is sufficient to engage the responsibility of the State-

10. Due Diligence
Paras Court sets out criteria- concludes «The more serious the offence or the greater the risk of further offences, the more likely that the prosecution should continue in the public interest, even if victims withdraw their complaint
How does the Court characterize the attitude of the local authorities? Which case does the Court refer to to dispute this perspective?
What does the Court say about the delay of the investigation?

11. Article 3
What are the criteria set out by the Court for examination of the scope of harm?
How does the Court characterize the applicant?
Which sources does the Court refer to formulate standard of state obligationt to take protective measures in the form of effective deterrence?

12. Article 14
How does Court construct argument of equality and non-discrimination in relation to domestic violence?
Which sources does it consult?

13. Damages
What damage does the applicant receive?

14. Outine of Sources from the European Court of Human Rights
Search for a precise case or Search for cases by Article, keyword or theme in the HUDOC database, using Case Title or Application Number:
Case-law Information Note, its Annual Index and all legal summaries:
Case-law guides & research reports:
European law handbooks:
Factsheets:
Human Rights Handbooks:
COURTalks-disCOURs:
Know the most important cases examined each month, check the Case-law Information Note:
Know the most important cases delivered for each year, see Reports of Judgments and Decisions
Overview of the Court’s recent case-law, Annual Index of the Case-law Information Notes
Know the admissibility criteria, check the Admissibility guide

15. Websites with case summaries and guides from the European Court of Human Rights

16. Vertido v. The Philippines, CEDAW 2010
Which articles are claimed to be violated?
What are the facts of the case?
What was the action taken by national authorities?
What happened when the case was examined within the appellate court?
What type of evidence was presented?
Which criteria does the national court apply?

17. Non-Discrimination
How does author build argument of violation of non-discrimination? Which source does she refer to?
What scope of harm does she claim?
What type of remedies does she request?
How is exhaustion of domestic remedies addressed?
What does the Committee conclue regarding effective remedy- duration of trial? Gender stereotypes in the judiciary? Gender bias of legislation? Test of Consent? Victimization in Judgment?

18. Recommendations
Which measures are recommended?

19. UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights
Fact Sheets:
Special Issues:
Reference Materials:
Issues:

20. UN entities on Women UN Women: http://www.unwomen.org/en
Committee for the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW):
Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences:
Women's Rights and Gender main page:
Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and in practice:

21. UN Treaty Bodies Database
Search by country, Treaty Body, or tyepe of document: e.g. jurisprudence, summary record, state reports, conclusions, NGO submissions