You can submit an application to the European Court of Human Rights if you believe that your human rights have been violated by France (or any other state, which has ratified the European Convention on Human Rights) state officials or institutions.
However, there are some conditions which you have to take into account before you can submit a complaint:
The ECtHR cannot investigate cases, which do not directly relate to the human rights protected in the Convention.
example The ECtHR cannot investigate your application if it is about state tax policies or social benefit policies.
The EctHR cannot examine the decisions or actions of private companies, international organizations or private individuals that do not represent French State institutions.
You cannot complain about a violation of another person’s human rights, unless you have been granted a power of attorney to submit an application in his/her name.
exception In a case where your family member or relative has died or disappeared as a result of a potential human rights violation, you have a right to file a complaint about such a violation in your own name, if you are personally and directly affected by it.
The ECtHR cannot investigate a potential violation of your rights if you have not first tried to resolve the problem using all the usual complaint mechanisms that are available under national law. This is known as the exhaustion of domestic remedies.
The French judicial system is organized into two distinct orders: the judicial order, competent for civil and criminal matters, and the administrative order, competent for administrative and public matters. Each of these orders are then divided into 3 categories with the latest, cassation, ruling on the applicable law but not on the facts of the proceedings. To submit a complaint to the ECtHR, you must have reached and received an answer from the last possible level of appeals (a court of cassation in most cases).
Learn more about the French legal system.
example If you believe that the judge in your trial is not impartial or independent, you first have to request his/her withdrawal from the case. In a case where the judge refuses, you must complain about it in your appeal to the appeal court. If the appeal court does not examine your complaint or remedy that complaint, you must appeal to the court of cassation of the appropriate order (Cour de cassation for the judicial order and the Conseil d’État for the administrative order). Only after you receive an answer from a cassation court can you complain to the ECtHR.
Also, you must have raised the argument about a violation of human rights at any stage in the internal process. Failure to do so will result in the dismissal of your case by the ECtHR.
A complete application, with all the documents that are required by the Court, must be sent in within 4 months of the last decision of the French state authorities or court concerning your complaint. If there is no institution to which to complain about such a violation, the time limit is measured from the date of the possible violation. The 4-month period will expire on its last date even if it falls on a weekend or a holiday. Therefore, make sure you send the application before the deadline - the date of the postal stamp on your application will be considered the date of submission.
important You should send your application as soon as possible, as the Court may ask you for additional documents which you have not included with your initial application. You will not be given additional time to submit these documents to the court. All the requested documents must be sent before the initial 4-month time limit expires, otherwise your application will be considered and rejected as inadmissible.
If the damage caused by a violation has been rectified or compensated for by the French courts or state authorities, the ECtHR will refuse to accept your application.
example If you were not allowed to submit your arguments or observations in the court of first instance, but the court of appeal has quashed the judgement of the court of first instance and allowed you to participate fully in an oral hearing, your complaint will be rejected as inadmissible.
The ECtHR will refuse to accept your application if you have already submitted a complaint about the same situation to another human rights body.
example If you submitted a complaint to the United Nations Human Rights Committee, the ECtHR will refuse to examine your application.
In some cases, such as possible torture, inhumane treatment or unlawful deprivation of liberty, the harm done by a violation is presumed to be significant because of the importance of that right itself. However, in other cases the disadvantage created by a violation of your human rights must be significant enough for the Court to take up your case.
example If you have lost €50 as a result of a violation of your property rights, the Court will most likely examine and reject your complaint as inadmissible.