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Caselaw Database

This is a database of positive domestic, regional and international legal decisions from around the world regarding economic, social, cultural, and environmental rights (ESCER). These case summaries provide greater awareness about ESCER issues globally, effective litigation strategies, progressive jurisprudence, and enforcement efforts. Our case summaries are available in English and Spanish, with more recent entries also available in French and Arabic. 

The caselaw database is made possible by the support of ESCR-Net members, many of whom have contributed or reviewed cases, as well as several allies. ESCR-Net expresses its special appreciation to the Program on Human Rights and the Global Economy at Northeastern University (PHRGE), which provides ongoing support to the case database. To suggest additional cases for inclusion, contact Felipe Mesel, Strategic Litigation Working Group Program Coordinator, at fmesel@escr-net.org.

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10/18/2006
Case Law | Development
The Ombudsman filed a protection action against the Colombian Ministry of Environment and Sociedad Occidental de Colombia Inc. on behalf of the U’wa People, seeking revocation of an oil development license granted to the said company affecting traditional indigenous land (see in this database “Defensor del Pueblo, doctor Jaime Córdoba...
09/28/2006
Case Law | Cultural Rights
On April 27, 1998, oil company Arco Oriente Inc. signed an hydrocarbon development agreement with Ecuador. Although 70% of the land belonging to Federación Independiente del Pueblo Shuar del Ecuador (FIPSE) was within the area to be devoted to the project, its members were not notified of the terms of...
09/28/2006
Case Law | Cultural Rights
The Yakye Axa community, a Paraguayan indigenous community belonging to the Lengua Enxet Sur people, filed a complaint with the Inter-American Commission of Human Rights (IACHR) alleging Paraguay had failed to acknowledge its right to property over ancestral land. Given its impossibility to solve the case, the Commission referred it...