A Systematic Guide to the Case-Law of the European Court of Human Rights 1997-1998: Vol. IV (review)

A Systematic Guide to the Case-Law of the European Court of Human Rights 1997-1998: Vol. IV, by Peter Kempees (The Hague-London Boston: Kluwer Law International 2000) 966 pp.

This useful volume completes the summary of the case-law of the "old" European Court of Human Rights (1960-1998) begun in the previous three volumes. Since 1999, reform of the European Convention on Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms has led to the constitution of a "new" European Court of Human Rights, a full-time institution doing the work of both the "old" Court and the European Commission of Human Rights. The Court now boasts forty-three judges from each of the forty-three states now party to the Convention. Based in Strasbourg, the Court rendered more than 700 judgments in nearly four decades.

Peter Kempees' book is a worthwhile reference tool. Under each article of the Convention it reproduces in a sensible order a paragraph or two from pertinent cases. A student, scholar, lawyer, or judge can therefore use the book as a pointer to the full case. The book also includes the most important international agreements constituting the by-now formidable Strasbourg legal system, lists of all the Court's judgments 1960-1998, an index, and an introductory "Notes to Users of this Volume." This two-page introduction is very helpful for most users of the book and might have been expanded to provide an even better background to the Court.

 

Mark Janis
University of Connecticut School of Law