Part II Means of Protection, Ch.VIII Inter-American Court of Human Rights, s.2 Jurisdiction and Functions, Article 64

Abstract

This chapter evaluates Article 64 of the American Convention on Human Rights (ACHR). Article 64 of the ACHR confers on the Inter-American Court, under certain personal and material conditions, the competence to render advisory opinions. This is therefore outside the realm of litigation, in that it is not a matter of deciding a dispute relating to the application or interpretation of the Convention but rather of answering a question in abstracto relating to human rights. Article 64 creates a particularly ambitious and original mechanism, bringing together both classical and innovative aspects. The advantage of this mechanism is that it can play a role in preventing violations of the Convention, if it is actually used. From its first opinion, the Inter-American Court laid down the purposes of this particular procedure. It is aimed to assist States in their implementation of the ACHR, and to assist other Organization of American States (OAS) member States not bound by the Convention and OAS organs. The advisory procedure before the Inter-American Court has, actually, no equivalent in comparison with other international courts and tribunals.