Jean-Paul Costa (3 November 1941 – 27 April 2023) was a French jurist and was the President of the

European Court of Human Rights The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR or ECtHR), also known as the Strasbourg Court, is an international court of the Council of Europe which interprets the European Convention on Human Rights. The court hears applications alleging that ...

from 19 January 2007 until his term at the Court ended on 3 November 2011. He was first appointed a judge of the Court on 1 November 1998, and in 2009 was elected to serve an additional three years as President.

Early life

Costa was born in

Tunis ''Tounsi'' french: Tunisois , population_note = , population_urban = , population_metro = 2658816 , population_density_km2 = , timezone1 = CET , utc_offset1 ...

, the capital of

French Tunisia The French protectorate of Tunisia (french: Protectorat français de Tunisie; ar, الحماية الفرنسية في تونس '), commonly referred to as simply French Tunisia, was established in 1881, during the French colonial Empire era, ...

, on 3 November 1941. He was educated at the Lycée Carnot in the city, but his family left when the country declared independence in 1957. He was then educated at the prestigious

Lycée Henri-IV The Lycée Henri-IV is a public secondary school located in Paris. Along with the Lycée Louis-le-Grand, it is widely regarded as one of the most prestigious and demanding sixth-form colleges (''lycées'') in France. The school educates more than ...

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...

, before studying at the

Institut d'Études Politiques de Paris , motto_lang = fr , mottoeng = Roots of the Future , type = Public research university''Grande école'' , established = , founder = Émile Boutmy , accreditation ...

, better known as Sciences Po, graduating with an undergraduate diploma in 1961,

Master of Laws A Master of Laws (M.L. or LL.M.; Latin: ' or ') is an advanced postgraduate academic degree, pursued by those either holding an undergraduate academic law degree, a professional law degree, or an undergraduate degree in a related subject. In mos ...

in 1962 and Diploma of Superior Studies in Public Law in 1964. He then studied from 1964 to 1966 at the

École nationale d'administration The École nationale d'administration (generally referred to as ENA, en, National School of Administration) was a French ''grande école'', created in 1945 by President Charles de Gaulle and principal author of the 1958 Constitution Michel Deb ...

(National Management School).

Career

Jean-Paul Costa Four Freedoms Award 2010

In June 1966, Costa was appointed ''Auditeur'' in the

Council of State A Council of State is a governmental body in a country, or a subdivision of a country, with a function that varies by jurisdiction. It may be the formal name for the cabinet or it may refer to a non-executive advisory body associated with a head o ...

, a body of the French national government that provides the executive branch with legal advice and acts as the administrative court of last resort. From 1968 to 1973, he lectured at Sciences Po, and from 1981 to 1984 was Director of the Office of the Minister of National Education,

Alain Savary Alain Savary (25 April 191817 February 1988) was a French Socialist politician, deputy to the National Assembly of France during the Fourth and Fifth Republic, chairman of the Socialist Party (PS) and a government minister in the 1950s and ...

. From 1985 to 1986, he led the French delegation negotiating the construction of the Channel Tunnel, and from 1985 to 1989 taught at the International Institute of Public Administration. He was then appointed Visiting Professor at the

University of Orléans The University of Orléans (french: Université d'Orléans) is a French university, in the Academy of Orléans and Tours. As of July 2015 it is a member of the regional university association Leonardo da Vinci consolidated University. History ...

(1989-1998) and the Sorbonne (1992-1998). After the end of his function as President of European Court of Human Rights, he was appointed the president of

International Institute of Human Rights The International Institute of Human Rights (French: ''Institut international des droits de l'homme,'' IIDH) is an association under French local law based in Strasbourg, France. It includes approximately 300 members (individual and collective) wor ...

European Court of Human Rights

On 1 January, he was appointed the judge in respect of France at the newly-permanent

. On 1 May 2000, he rose to become a Section President and on 1 November 2001 Vice-President of the Court. On 19 January 2007, he succeeded Swiss Luzius Wildhaber as President of the Court. He was re-elected to this post in 2009. His function as President ended on 3 November 2011. He was succeeded by Sir Nicolas Bratza.

Death

Costa died in

Dordogne Dordogne ( , or ; ; oc, Dordonha ) is a large rural department in Southwestern France, with its prefecture in Périgueux. Located in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region roughly half-way between the Loire Valley and the Pyrenees, it is name ...

on 27 April 2023, at the age of 81.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Costa, Jean-Paul 1941 births 2023 deaths Presidents of the European Court of Human Rights Judges of the European Court of Human Rights 20th-century French judges 21st-century French judges Lycée Henri-IV alumni Sciences Po alumni École nationale d'administration alumni Members of the Conseil d'État (France) French judges of international courts and tribunals Commanders of the Legion of Honour Officers of the Legion of Honour Grand Officers of the Ordre national du Mérite Commanders of the Ordre national du Mérite Grand Cross of the Order of Civil Merit People from Tunis