
The pathologisation of trans* persons in the ECtHR's case law on legal gender recognition
- Author
- Pieter Cannoot (UGent)
- Organization
- Abstract
- The European Court of Human Rights is the human rights monitoring body that has dealt with the largest number of cases related to gender identity and trans* persons. In this regard, it has recognised under Article 8 ECHR both a right to gender self-determination and a positive obligation for the State to adopt a procedure for legal gender recognition. However, Contracting States were given a wide margin of appreciation to set conditions for the legal recognition of a person's actual gender identity, leading to the acceptance by the Strasbourg Court of pathologising requirements such as a diagnosis of gender dysphoria and compulsory sex reassignment surgery. This contribution analyses and conceptually explains this message of trans* pathologisation in the ECtHR's case law. Subsequently, on a normative level, it argues that this case law cannot be upheld taking into account the international trend towards full trans* depathologisation, and the scope of the margin of appreciation that States (ought to) have in cases concerning gender identity.
- Keywords
- European Court of Human Rights, trans* persons, gender nonconformity, pathologisation, gender self-determination, DEPATHOLOGISATION, PREVALENCE
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Citation
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication: http://hdl.handle.net/1854/LU-8586242
- MLA
- Cannoot, Pieter. “The Pathologisation of Trans* Persons in the ECtHR’s Case Law on Legal Gender Recognition.” NETHERLANDS QUARTERLY OF HUMAN RIGHTS, vol. 37, no. 1, 2019, pp. 14–35, doi:10.1177/0924051918820984.
- APA
- Cannoot, P. (2019). The pathologisation of trans* persons in the ECtHR’s case law on legal gender recognition. NETHERLANDS QUARTERLY OF HUMAN RIGHTS, 37(1), 14–35. https://doi.org/10.1177/0924051918820984
- Chicago author-date
- Cannoot, Pieter. 2019. “The Pathologisation of Trans* Persons in the ECtHR’s Case Law on Legal Gender Recognition.” NETHERLANDS QUARTERLY OF HUMAN RIGHTS 37 (1): 14–35. https://doi.org/10.1177/0924051918820984.
- Chicago author-date (all authors)
- Cannoot, Pieter. 2019. “The Pathologisation of Trans* Persons in the ECtHR’s Case Law on Legal Gender Recognition.” NETHERLANDS QUARTERLY OF HUMAN RIGHTS 37 (1): 14–35. doi:10.1177/0924051918820984.
- Vancouver
- 1.Cannoot P. The pathologisation of trans* persons in the ECtHR’s case law on legal gender recognition. NETHERLANDS QUARTERLY OF HUMAN RIGHTS. 2019;37(1):14–35.
- IEEE
- [1]P. Cannoot, “The pathologisation of trans* persons in the ECtHR’s case law on legal gender recognition,” NETHERLANDS QUARTERLY OF HUMAN RIGHTS, vol. 37, no. 1, pp. 14–35, 2019.
@article{8586242, abstract = {{The European Court of Human Rights is the human rights monitoring body that has dealt with the largest number of cases related to gender identity and trans* persons. In this regard, it has recognised under Article 8 ECHR both a right to gender self-determination and a positive obligation for the State to adopt a procedure for legal gender recognition. However, Contracting States were given a wide margin of appreciation to set conditions for the legal recognition of a person's actual gender identity, leading to the acceptance by the Strasbourg Court of pathologising requirements such as a diagnosis of gender dysphoria and compulsory sex reassignment surgery. This contribution analyses and conceptually explains this message of trans* pathologisation in the ECtHR's case law. Subsequently, on a normative level, it argues that this case law cannot be upheld taking into account the international trend towards full trans* depathologisation, and the scope of the margin of appreciation that States (ought to) have in cases concerning gender identity.}}, author = {{Cannoot, Pieter}}, issn = {{0924-0519}}, journal = {{NETHERLANDS QUARTERLY OF HUMAN RIGHTS}}, keywords = {{European Court of Human Rights,trans* persons,gender nonconformity,pathologisation,gender self-determination,DEPATHOLOGISATION,PREVALENCE}}, language = {{eng}}, number = {{1}}, pages = {{14--35}}, title = {{The pathologisation of trans* persons in the ECtHR's case law on legal gender recognition}}, url = {{http://doi.org/10.1177/0924051918820984}}, volume = {{37}}, year = {{2019}}, }
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