Gender mainstreaming at the European Court of Human Rights: the need for a coherent strategy in approaching cases of violence against women and domestic violence

Any assessment of the jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Right’s (ECtHR) in the field of violence against women and domestic violence must start with an acknowledgement of the ECtHR’s landmark judgments in this area and the positive practical impact those judgments have had upon the protection of women.

However, much progress is still to be made. This article analyses three ECtHR cases from Russia and Georgia, and in so doing, highlights the need for greater transparency, proactivity, and coherency on the part of the Court. It considers in turn: a) the seemingly discriminatory impact of the ECtHR’s approach to applications for interim measures; b) the need for judicial proactivity in bringing a gender perspective and gender mainstreaming to cases brought before the Court; c) the lack of a reasoned and transparent approach with regard to redress. Ultimately, the article puts forward potential improvements which could be made to ensure that the ECtHR monitors its own practice and procedures in order to address the demonstrable need for a coherent gender mainstreaming strategy.

The published article is reproduced in this repository with publisher permission. The article is originally published by the University of Miami Inter-American Law Review, recommended citation:
Joanna Evans, Gender Mainstreaming at the European Court of Human Rights: The Need for A Coherent Strategy in Approaching Cases of Violence Against Women and Domestic Violence, 54 U. MIA Inter-Am. L. Rev. 1 (2023) Available at: https://repository.law.miami.edu/umialr/vol54/iss1/3