This case alleged human rights violations resulting from Costa Rica’s prohibition on the practice of in vitro fertilization (“IVF”), which had been in effect in Costa Rica since 2000, following a ruling of the Constitutional Chamber of the Costa Rican Supreme Court of Justice (“Constitutional Chamber”) in which it was held that IVF violated the right to …Read more

Circular No. 03-2006 of the Municipality of Oreamuno designated an area within the public building to serve as a smoking room in accordance with Law N°7501 (1995), which provided for such spaces. The designated area was the aisle leading to the kitchen. Petitioner sought relief from the alleged violation of her right to health as …Read more

Petitioner filed a Writ of Amparo to challenge the administrative procedure that instituted a partial ban on cigar and cigarette advertisements pursuant Article 9 of Costa Rica’s Tobacco Regulation Act. Petitioner claimed such a partial ban was constitutionally unacceptable, as only a total ban on advertisement could fulfill the obligation of the State to safeguard …Read more

Petitioner was an inmate in a State prison who filed a Writ of Amparo challenging the administrative regulation that exempted inmates from the prohibition to smoke inside cells and other closed, indoor environments within prisons. In his submission, plaintiff contended the regulation (of infra-legal hierarchy status) was unconstitutional as it forcibly exposed him to tobacco …Read more

The plaintiff, a Costa Rican national, presented an appeal of protection against the Ministry of Justice claiming his right to health had been violated. The plaintiff was deprived from liberty in a local prison which he claimed was overpopulated and in close contact with persons with chronic diseases. The Ministry of Justice argued that it …Read more

A Presidential Decree authorizing and regulating the practice of in vitro fertilization was issued in 1995. The Decree permitted solely married couples to utilize the practice; it prohibited the insemination of more than six ovules per couple; and it required that all embryos be deposited in the maternal uterus, prohibiting the freezing, preservation or discarding …Read more

Petitioner, a man seeking treatment for infertility, alleges on behalf of others seeking treatment that the Government of Costa Rica’s prohibition on access to in vitro fertilization, one of the treatments available, constitutes violations of Articles 1, 2, 4, 5, 8, 11(2), 17, 24, 25, 26 and 32 of the American Convention on Human Rights, …Read more

Petitioners challenged the constitutionality of Article 9 of Costa Rica’s tobacco regulation act, which provided for a partial ban on cigar and cigarette advertisement. In their submission, petitioners claimed the constitutional standard to safeguard the right to health, to life and to a clean environment could not be appropriately fulfilled by such a partial ban, …Read more

Petitioner brought an action against the Social Security Service of Costa Rica, asserting that the institution arbitrarily stopped providing patients with pharmaceuticals for the treatment of HIV/AIDS, in violation of petitioner’s constitutional right to health. The petitioner sought the recognition of an obligation on the part of the Social Security Service of Costa Rica to …Read more