How to take a case to the European Court of Human Rights: a guide without the myths

“I'll take it all the way to Strasbourg!” People in Romania say it often, usually after losing a case. Few know what it involves, and many applications are rejected without ever being examined on the merits. According to Romania's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in a single wave of 17 decisions the Court declared inadmissible 925 applications against Romania about detention conditions. This guide explains the Court's official rules, as the Court itself publishes them.

What the Court can and cannot do

The European Court of Human Rights checks whether the State violated one of the rights in the European Convention: the right to life, the ban on torture and degrading treatment, the right to liberty, to a fair trial, to private and family life, freedom of expression, protection of property and others. It does not retry your case and cannot overturn a national judgment. If you win, it can order the State to pay you compensation, and the State must take measures so the violation is not repeated.

The complaint must concern a public authority. A dispute with a neighbour or a company reaches Strasbourg only if the State, through its courts or institutions, failed to protect your right.

The conditions you must meet

• You have used the remedies at home. You must have raised the same complaint before the national courts, up to the highest one, respecting their deadlines. You do not need to use extraordinary or ineffective remedies.
• You met the 4-month deadline. It normally runs from the date of the final decision of the highest national court. It ends on the last day of the 4 months, even if that is a Sunday or public holiday. The application must be sent on or before that day.
• You are the victim. You cannot complain about a law in general; you must have been directly affected.

The form, step by step

• Use only the official form, downloaded from the Court's website. No other form is accepted.
• Fill in every field. The facts and complaints go in the spaces on the form itself. Writing “see annex” is not acceptable. You may add an explanatory annex of up to 20 pages, but it can only develop what you wrote in the form.
• Enclose copies, not originals, of the relevant decisions and documents, in date order, with numbered pages, not stapled or bound. Documents are not returned.
• Send it by post to: The Registrar, European Court of Human Rights, Council of Europe, 1 avenue de l’Europe, 67075 Strasbourg Cedex, France. A fax does not stop the 4-month clock.

If any information or document required by Rule 47 of the Rules of Court is missing, the application will not be examined. It is the most common reason people lose everything, even when they were right on the substance.

Language, cost, lawyer

At the start you can write in Romanian, or in any official language of a State that has ratified the Convention. If the Government is asked about your case, correspondence continues in English or French. The procedure is free. You do not need a lawyer to lodge the application; later, if it is communicated to the Government and you lack means, the Court may grant free legal aid.

What happens next

If the form is complete, the Registry opens a file and sends you labels with its reference. Always answer the Court's letters: a new file that stays inactive is destroyed after six months. If you want your name kept out of public documents, you must ask explicitly and explain why; the Court grants anonymity only in justified cases.

A case can take years. In truly urgent situations, where there is an imminent risk of irreparable harm, the Court can order interim measures, but these are exceptional.

This guide summarises the rules published by the Court on the date it was checked. For your own situation, always check the official notes and, if you can, ask a lawyer.