Coursework Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 1

Coursework - Essay Example Furthermore, section 2(1) of the HRA asserts that â€Å"A court or tribunal determining a question which has arisen in connection with a Convention right must take into account Convention rights† and any determinations by the European Court of Human Rights3. Moreover, section 3(1) imposes a positive obligation on judicial authorities to interpret all legislation â€Å"in away which is compatible with the Convention rights†. Accordingly, the HRA â€Å"has had the effect of incorporating the European Convention on Human rights into our law giving individuals rights which can be directly enforced in the UK courts4†. The focus of this analysis is to consider how the HRA has impacted the judicial approach to human rights claims prior to and after the implementation of the HRA, with reference to case law particularly Fitzpatrick v Sterling Housing Association5and Ghaidan v Mendoza.6 Prior to the implementation of the ECHR, the courts would exploit uncertainty in existing legal principles to incorporate Convention rights through the backdoor on public policy grounds7. For example, in the case of Waddington v Miah8, Lord Reid expressly referred to Article 7 of the Convention in reaching his determination exploiting ambiguity in existing legislation applicable to the case. However, the fundamental difference is that Parliamentary sovereignty was paramount, and prevented any significant increases in levels of human rights protection under national law prior to the HRA9. Moreover, Parliament was free to remove or control individual liberties at any time by passing appropriate legislation. However, the HRA goes further whereby the role of the judiciary is to act as guardian to individual human rights10. As such, it is argued that the HRA sets a new standard for all new legislation and provides essential powers to UK courts to enforce Convention rights, thereby arguably forcing