The national judge and judicial independence
| Author | Luis López Guerra |
| DOI | 10.1177/1023263X17731015 |
| Date | 01 August 2017 |
| Published date | 01 August 2017 |
| Subject Matter | Articles |
Article
The national judge and
judicial independence: The
case of the Strasbourg court
Luis Lo
´pez Guerra*
Abstract
In many international jurisdictions, including the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR), one of
the judges taking part in the proceedings must be a ‘national judge’, that is, a judge appointed in
respect of a state that is party to the proceedings before the ECtHR. The mere presence of these
national judges, their role and the way they are appointed have been the subject of much dis-
cussion, and doubts have been cast over their impartiality and independence. This article examines
arguments that can be made for and against this practice, with particular emphasis on the role of
national judges on the ECtHR.
Keywords
International courts, European Court of Human Rights, judicial independence, judicial impartiality,
national judge
1. National judges on international courts
Using terminology generally found in literature on the matter (although not found in the documents
of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) themselves), in this article the expression
‘national judge’ refers to the judge elected in respect of
1
the defendant-party state in a given case
*Judge at the European Court of Human Rights, Strasbourg, France
Corresponding author:
Luis Lo
´pez Guerra, European Court of Human Rights, Strasbourg, France.
Email: Luismaria.LopezGuerra@echr.coe.int
1. The expression ‘in respect of’ is taken from Article 26(4) of the European Convention on Human Rights. See, Council of
Europe, ‘European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, as Amended by Pro-
tocols Nos. 11 and 14. Entry into Force 3 September 1953’, http://www.echr.coe.int/Documents/Convention_ENG.pdf.
See footnote 11.
Maastricht Journal of European and
Comparative Law
2017, Vol. 24(4) 552–564
ªThe Author(s) 2017
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DOI: 10.1177/1023263X17731015
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