European Court of Human Rights

The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) is perhaps the most important court in the world in terms of its impact on people and nations. It is the court of last resort for more than 900 million people from 47 member nations of the Council of Europe (COE). Established as the enforcement arm of the European Convention on Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, which was developed in the aftermath of World War II and signed by 10 nations on November 4, 1950, the convention took effect on September 3, 1953. The court has been operating since, serving an evergrowing number of nations and people with a court that allows individuals to make claims of human rights violations against their own government, a unique judicial innovation ...