Accession of the EU to the ECHR: A more developed fundamental rights low for the EU after the Lisbon Treaty?

Abstract

The Treaty of Lisbon introduced important changes in the protection of human rights in the EU, the most important of which lie in the changes in Article 6 of the Treaty on the European Union. These provisions indicate that the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights is now legally binding, having the same status as primary EU law, and that the EU "shall accede" to the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). Since the entry into force of the Treaty of Lisbon, the Charter has been referred to on numerous occasions by the European Court of Justice and now acts as the main source of human rights in the EU. This article examines the import of this case law, some of which are ground-breaking and controversial, as well as how the higher profile for human rights under the Charter is likely to change the nature of the EU’s relationship with the ECHR. The article also examines the complex procedure for the EU’s accession to the ECHR, which is now underway, highlighting particularly significant aspects of this process. The article concludes with some general reflections about the status of human rights protection in the EU, suggesting that this has become one of the most significant areas of EU law that has had, and continues to have, a crucial impact on the EU’s relationships with its Member States, the EU and international law.