Source: All England Reporter
Publisher Citation: [2002] All ER (D) 320 (Oct)
Court: European Court of Human Rights
Judge:

Judges Pellonpaa (President), Bratza, Pastor Ridruejo, Straznicka, Maruste, Pavlovschi, Garlicki, and Mrs F Elens-Passos (Deputy Section Registrar)
Representation Stephen Grosz of Bindman & Partners for the applicants.
  C Whomersley of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office for the Government of the United Kingdom.
Judgment Dates: 22 October 2002

Catchwords

Human rights - Right to family and private life - Homosexual - Discharge from armed forces on ground of sexual orientation - Legality of policy - European Convention on Human Rights, arts 8, 14.

The Case

The European Court of Justice, following previous authority, held that the investigation of the applicants' sexual orientation and their discharge from the navy on the grounds of their homosexuality constituted direct interferences with their right to respect for their private lives which could not be justified under the second paragraph of art8 of the European Convention on Human Rights as being 'necessary in a democratic society', and found a breach of art8 accordingly. The applicants' art14 complaints did not give rise to any separate issue.

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