Can positive obligations of States serve as a remedy for human rights violations committed by juristic persons?

Pavel Ondrejek

doi:10.18593/ejjl.v19i1.16511

Autores

Pavel Ondrejek Faculty of Law Charles University Prague Czech Republic https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6764-8993

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.18593/ejjl.v19i1.16511

Resumo

Abstract: Positive obligations of States to protect and implement human rights are considered a part of various effects of human rights in legislations. In this article, it is argued that a crucial problem arises from the inconsistent practice of addressing violations of human rights committed by juristic persons together with a lack of underlying general theory of liability for human rights violations committed by private entities. Without a major change in the legal doctrine and case-law, we will need to remain focused on the role of the State as a guarantor of human rights, rather than on the imposition of human rights obligations on private-law entities. In this article, it is argued that the nature of the relationship between a juristic person and the State is not the only relevant aspect, as we should also examine the activity of the juristic person in question.

Keywords: Positive obligations of States. Juristic persons. State-juristic person nexus. Fundamental rights. Horizontal effect.

Resumo: Obrigações estatais positivas de proteger e de implementar direitos humanos são parte dos vários efeitos dos direitos humanos nas legislações nacionais. Neste artigo, argumenta-se que um problema crucial decorre da prática de abordar violações de direitos humanos cometidas por pessoas jurídicas sem uma teoria geral da responsabilidade por violações de direitos humanos cometidas por entidades privadas. Sem uma mudança importante na doutrina e na jurisprudência será preciso permanecer olhando apenas para o papel do Estado como garantidor de direitos humanos. Neste artigo argumenta-se que a natureza da relação entre uma pessoa jurídica e o Estado não é o único aspecto relevante. É preciso examinar também a atividade da pessoa jurídica em questão.

Palavras-chave: Obrigações positivas dos Estados. Pessoas jurídicas.

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Biografia do Autor

Pavel Ondrejek, Faculty of Law Charles University Prague Czech Republic

Lecturer at the Department of Legal Theory and Legal Doctrines, Faculty of Law, Charles University, Prague E-mail: ondrejek@prf.cuni.cz

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