ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Rachael Kondak

Rachael Kondak works as the Head of the Private Office of the President of the European Court of Human Rights. Having begun her career as a barrister in London practising in family law, Rachael joined the Council of Europe in 2005 working for the Commissioner for Human Rights and then joining the Court in 2009.

POSTS BY Rachael Kondak

29 June 2026

Rachael Kondak

Looking Sideways

What are the major interpretative principles which assist the European Court of Human Rights in its decision-making? What role do they play in climate change judgments? Subsidiarity, the living instrument doctrine and a harmonious interpretation of international law all enable the Court to incorporate relevant comparative law into its reasoning. Climate change case-law is particularly well-suited to the comparative law approach and I argue that the role of comparative law can potentially have more impact in this emerging area of the law than in others. Continue reading >>

Rachael Kondak

Looking Sideways

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