DEVELOPMENTS REGARDING DOMESTIC VIOLENCE IN THE CASE-LAW OF THE EUROPEAN COURT OF HUMAN RIGHTS: KURT V. AUSTRIA

Abstract

The focus of the paper is placed on the recent developments in the case-law of the European
Court of Human Rights regarding cases that involve domestic violence. The European Court
of Human Rights has already delivered a number of important judgments in cases concerning
domestic violence. One of the most recent judgments in this regard is delivered in the case Kurt
v. Austria on 4 July 2019. No violation of the European Convention of Human Rights was
found in Kurt. However, it seems that the reasoning of the European Court of Human Rights
by which it reached its judgment, in this case, does not take into account certain standards
regarding domestic violence cases, established in its previous case-law. In this sense, the paper
analyses this case in terms of the previously established case-law as regards domestic violence.
Namely, as it seems that the case-law of the European Court of Human Rights on domestic
violence is somewhat inconsistent, it is crucial for the European Court of Human Rights to
fully clarify its approach on domestic violence, especially having in mind that its rulings are
vital guidelines for the national authorities in fulfilling their obligations to secure to everyone
the rights and freedoms guaranteed in the European Convention on Human Rights.