Due Process of Law Before the European Court of Human Rights: The Secret Deliberation

In: American journal of international law: AJIL, Band 66, Heft 3, S. 509-525

Abstract

"Secrecy of the deliberation," a term of art used widely in court procedure, is neither a universal principle nor one with a single meaning. Continuing an old Germanic tradition, courts in some Swiss cantons, as well as the Federal Court in Lausanne, deliberate in the presence of the parties. In most of the Western world, including the common law countries, Latin mAmerica, and Scandinavia, the principle of secret deliberations is accepted but does not cover the vote, that is, the position taken byeach judge. In all six Common Market states, however, the vote is secret and the individual judge is under an obligation not to reveal his position. Originally adopted under the regime of absolute government to protect the independence of the judge, this extended secrecy has come under attack recently, especially when applied to constitutional litigation. Legislation enacted in the German Federal Republic in December, 1970, giving members ofthe Federal Constitutional Court the right to reveal their vote, may be the precursor of changes in this matter.