Proposed criteria for the application of conventionality control in accordance with constitutional identity

Abstract

The jurisprudential development of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights has transformed conventionality control into an essential tool for the Inter-American system. This has facilitated, at the international level, the Court's extension of its conventional doctrine into the domestic law of nation-states, thereby transferring the patterns of its jurisprudence. Consequently, this research has the general objective of analyzing the proposed criteria for the application of Conventionality Control in accordance with constitutional identity. A legal-dogmatic and documentary-analytical design was employed, based on the review of 24 scholarly works and legal texts. The findings demonstrate that a harmonious application of conventionality control—one that does not undermine the constitutional identity of states—is feasible, provided that clearly established criteria are applied. Thus, conventionality control has been established as an essential instrument to ensure the effectiveness of human rights within the domestic sphere of states party to the American Convention, while respecting the core of the human rights involved. In other words, national courts, particularly constitutional courts, become the guardians of constitutional identity within the framework of conventionality control.