Summary
In the determination of suits at law the independence and impartiality of tribunals is an absolute right.
Obligations
Election Parts
Issues
Criteria
Quotes
- All persons shall be equal before the judicial system. In the determination of any charge against him, everyone shall be entitled to a fair and public hearing within a reasonable amount of time by an independent and impartial court.
- In the determination of his civil rights and obligations or of any criminal charge against him, everyone is entitled to a fair and public hearing within a reasonable time by an independent and impartial tribunal established by law. Judgment shall be pronounced publicly but the press and public may be excluded from all or part of the trial in the interests of morals, public order or national security in a democratic society, where the interests of juveniles or the protection of the private life of the parties so require, or to the extent strictly necessary in the opinion of the court in special circumstances where publicity would prejudice the interests of justice.
- Every person has the right to a hearing, with due guarantees and within a reasonable time, by a competent, independent, and impartial tribunal, previously established by law, in the substantiation of any accusation of a criminal nature made against him or for the determination of his rights and obligations of a civil, labor, fiscal, or other nature.
- Migrant workers and their families shall have the right to equality with nationals of the State concerned before the courts and tribunals. In the determination of any criminal charge against them or their rights and obligations in a suit of law, they shall be entitled to a fair and public hearing by a competent, independent and impartial tribunal established by law.
- Member States recognize that the rule of law involves not only the promulgation of good laws that are in conformity with the provisions on human rights, but also a good judicial system, a good system of administration, and good management of the State apparatus.
- Judges shall be independent in the discharge of their duties.
- In the determination of any criminal charge against him, or of his rights and obligations in a suit at law, everyone shall be entitled to a fair and public hearing by a competent, independent and impartial tribunal established by law.
- State parties shall strive to institutionalize good political governance through: 3. An independent judiciary.
- States should take specific measures guaranteeing the independence of the judiciary, protecting judges from any form of political influence in their decision-making through the constitution or adoption of laws establishing clear procedures and objective criteria for the appointment, remuneration, tenure, promotion, suspension and dismissal of the members of the judiciary and disciplinary sanctions taken against them.
- The notion of a 'tribunal' in article 14, paragraph 1 designates a body, regardless of its denomination, that is established by law, is independent of the executive and legislative branches of government or enjoys in specific cases judicial independence in deciding legal matters in proceeding that are judicial in nature. Article 14, paragraph 1, second sentence guarantees access to such tribunals to all who have criminal charges brought against them...Similarly, whenever rights and obligations in a suit at law are determined, this must be done at least at one stage of the proceedings by a tribunal within the meaning of this sentence.
- In Podkolzina v. Latvia (no. 46726/99, ECHR 2002-II), the Court reiterated that the right to stand as a candidate in an election, which is guaranteed by Article 3 of Protocol No. 1 and is inherent in the concept of a truly democratic regime, would only be illusory if one could be arbitrarily deprived of it at any moment. Consequently, while it is true that States have a wide margin of appreciation when establishing eligibility conditions in the abstract, the principle that rights must be effective requires the finding that this or that candidate has failed to satisfy them to comply with a number of criteria framed to prevent arbitrary decisions. In particular, such a finding must be reached by a body which can provide a minimum of guarantees of its impartiality. Similarly, the discretion enjoyed by the body concerned must not be exorbitantly wide; it must be circumscribed, with sufficient precision, by the provisions of domestic law. Lastly, the procedure for declaring a candidate ineligible must be such as to ensure a fair and objective decision and prevent any abuse of power on the part of the relevant authority (ibid., § 35).
- The requirement of competence, independence and impartiality of a tribunal in the sense of article 14, paragraph 1, is an absolute right that is not subject to any exception.
- The independence of judicial bodies and judicial officers shall be guaranteed by the constitution and laws of the country and respected by the government, its agencies and authorities.
- At the beginning of the new century and millennium, we reaffirm our commitment to the promotion of democracy and its core values in our respective countries. In particular, we undertake to work with renewed determination to enforce…adherence to the separation of powers, including the protection of the independence of the judiciary and of effective parliaments.
- The judiciary shall decide matters before them impartially, on the basis of facts and in accordance with the law, without any restrictions, improper influences, inducements, pressures, threats or interferences, direct or indirect, from any quarter or far any reason.
- Everyone is entitled in full equality to a fair and public hearing by an independent and impartial tribunal, in the determination of his rights and obligations and of any criminal charge against him.
- Judges should in particular have the following responsibilities: a. to act independently in all cases and free from any outside influence; b. to conduct cases in an impartial manner in accordance with their assessment of the facts and their understanding of law, to ensure that a fair hearing is given to all parties.
- Everyone shall have the right to be tried by ordinary courts or tribunals using established legal procedures. Tribunals that do not use the duly established procedures of the legal process shall not be created to displace the jurisdiction belonging to the ordinary courts or judicial tribunals.
- In support of Good Governance We have agreed to: ensure the independence of the judicial system that will be able to prevent abuse of power and corruption.
- All administrative acts should be subject to judicial review.
- Democratic elections should be conducted: c) under a system of separation of power that ensures in particular, the independence of the judiciary.
- To this end, everyone whose rights or freedoms are allegedly violated has the right, either in person or through legally authorized representation, to complain to and have that complaint promptly reviewed in a public hearing before an independent, impartial and competent judicial or other authority established by law and to obtain from such authority a decision, in accordance with law, providing redress, including any compensation due, where there has been a violation of that person's rights or freedoms, as well as enforcement of the eventual decision and award, all without undue delay.
- States should ensure that violations of human rights and complaints relating to the electoral process are determined promptly within the timeframe of the electoral process and effectively by an independent and impartial authority, such as an electoral commission or the courts.
- Procedures should be established to allow challenges to be made within an appropriate timeframe to an independent body, such as a court. Challenges should be dealt with impartially, and decisions should be based on the available evidence and made without political consideration.
- it is necessary to guarantee a judiciary that is totally unconstrained by any partisan influence or control.
- Going beyond the requirements and practices described earlier, some additional best practices for handling election complaints and appeals include the following: The right to an impartial tribunal to decide the complaint.
- In order to impart justice in a manner that is absolutely faithful to the mandate of the constitution and the law, it is not enough for EDRBs to enjoy structural autonomy and functional independence. It is also necessary that those who judge electoral matters act with absolute independence, impartiality and professionalism in their individual capacity, without recognizing any subordination to any interest or will other than those stated by law.
- the effectiveness, impartiality and independence of the judiciary, including the office of the prosecutor, and that of electoral bodies, is a pre-condition for the fair, effective and impartial handling of election-related disputes in conformity with the commonly accepted international standards on elections and the rule of law.
- Decisions taken by EDR bodies should always be impartial. Officials dealing with EDR should act objectively and carry out their duties in an impartial manner, irrespective of their personal beliefs and interests.
- The principle of investigations being undertaken by independent and impartial bodies is fundamental to the credibility and legitimacy of the investigation process and outcome.
- Without structural and procedural safeguards to ensure independence and impartiality, public perception that election investigations favor a particular side in a dispute could endanger the democratic legitimacy and the credibility of the entire electoral process.
- For this purpose, both the Constitution and current legal norms should provide for the functional, administrative, and financial autonomy of the institution responsible for electoral justice.
- Therefore, in order to guarantee the autonomy and impartiality of bodies responsible for electoral dispute resolution, their legal independence should be ensured at the highest possible level. Thus, the separation of powers must be established at the constitutional level, where it should be clearly stated that the electoral judicial body is independent of the Executive and Legislative branches and that it is not subordinate to either of these powers.
- The appeal procedure should be of a judicial nature, in the sense that the right of the appellants to proceedings in which both parties are heard should be safeguarded.