In March 2013, clinic students Scott Idiart (3L) and Amanda Snyder (3L) traveled to Medellín, Colombia with clinical fellow, Britton Schwartz, to attend the Inter-American Court of Human Rights 47th Extraordinary Session. They observed the Courts hearings on three different contentious cases, including Pacheco Tineo Family v. Bolivia. The Clinic will be submitting an amicus brief for the case, and attending the hearing gave the students the opportunity to develop ideas for the brief, while listening to live testimony and arguments of the actual parties involved.
The last few days of the session, the Inter-American Court led a seminar on contemporary human rights issues entitled The Inter-American Human Rights System: Trends and Complementarities. Some of the most prominent legal minds in Latin America, including most of the Inter-American Court judges, spoke at length on legal issues that are both unique and challenging to the Inter-American System.
Scott Idiart noted that the highlight of the experience, in my opinion, was seeing the Court operate during a contentious case. From Commission lawyers statements to party and expert witness testimony to Court judges questions, we were able to witness the confluence of the Inter-American System and the role each party plays in the pursuit of justice. That the sessions took place in Colombia, a country with a renewed emphasis on human rights, only added to the memorable experience of seeing the Inter-American System in action.
Scott Idiart and Amanda Snyder in Medellín, Colombia
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